Manchester United's attacking problems deepened on Sunday as a 1-1 draw at Fulham left the club with a single win from five Premier League games, and Marcus Rashford at the centre of a growing debate about the club's misfiring front line.
Rashford was withdrawn after 77 minutes at Craven Cottage with a hip problem, having managed two shots on target from six attempts and created four chances. The 28-year-old has now gone without a goal or assist across 435 minutes of football this season, and that injury has since forced him to withdraw from England's Nations League squad alongside Manchester United teammate Kobbie Mainoo. He is set to miss upcoming fixtures against Spain, Czechia and Croatia over the next three weeks, with his return date as yet unconfirmed.
Michael Owen used his platform on Premier League Productions to name Rashford the most exposed member of Michael Carrick's attack. "On the left, Marcus Rashford has been probably the quietest of those attackers," Owen told Premier League Productions. "He was quiet again today in his body language, just the glum face. He just doesn't seem to be loving his football which has been a permanent frustration with Marcus."
The former United striker drew a direct line from Rashford's Barcelona loan — during which he notched 25 goal contributions, 14 of them goals — to the uncertainty now surrounding his place in the side. Owen noted that Barcelona's decision not to activate the purchase option and instead spend nearly three times as much to sign Anthony Gordon said something significant about how Rashford had been regarded there. He added that while Rashford had done reasonably well back at United, it was not well enough, and that his position in the front three was the one most at risk.
Owen also pointed to the potential return of Benjamin Sesko as a factor that could reshape the attack entirely. "There's a bit of a demand for Benjamin Sesko to come back in and start, injury permitting of course," he said. "But if that happens, Cunha is going to go on the left and Rashford would be the weak link in that attack as things stand."
Rashford returned to Old Trafford in the summer after more than 18 months away on successive loans at Aston Villa and Barcelona, with Ruben Amorim — who had clashed with the forward — no longer in the dugout. Carrick gave him the No.9 shirt and handed him four starts from the opening five league games, deploying him on his favoured left wing on Sunday, where Matheus Cunha led the line and Bryan Mbeumo occupied the opposite flank with Bruno Fernandes in the number 10 role.
Owen also expressed concern about Rashford's mentality, saying the 28-year-old should be in his prime and tearing defences apart, but that consistent performances of that level had simply not materialised. He acknowledged Rashford possessed every physical attribute a player could want, describing him as tall, a great athlete, quick and technically gifted — but argued that mental strength was the most important thing in football, and that it was not often Rashford appeared to have that in the right place.
United's collective numbers make equally grim reading. The club rank 20th in the Premier League for high-intensity distance, total sprints and sprinting time, and they covered 6.6km less than Fulham across Sunday's match. They have scored eight times in five league games, though five of those came in a single fixture.
With a three-week international break now under way, Carrick has time to consider his options — and whether Rashford will retain his place when league action resumes.
Reporting: CaughtOffside, GiveMeSport, Mirror, Daily Mail, TeamTalk, Metro.