Marcus Rashford has given a ‘one-word verdict’ to Ruben Amorim, who famously called him ‘lazy’. But the Manchester United man has done something startling to those who have a weird agenda.

Lazy journalism
One common theme in football reporting throughout this winter was the faux shock at Marcus Rashford turning up to Manchester United training despite it being literally part of his well-paid job.

It is important to point out that at no stage during his interminable exit from the club did Rashford fail to do so when fit. But that did not prevent the media reporting on his continued attendance at Carrington as if it was even vaguely newsworthy or indeed new.

And not even joining Aston Villa on loan can stop this narrative freight train, as shown by this opening paragraph in The Sun:

‘MARCUS RASHFORD insisted on TRAINING on his first day-off at Aston Villa as he looks to hit the ground running at his new club.’

He did WHAT? He ‘insisted on TRAINING’?! On a scheduled day off with his new club and manager whom he will be overly keen to impress? Marcus Rashford? The famous work-shy fop? That can’t be right.

Someone needs more TRAINING if they reckon that hyphen is okay. But the next line unfortunately reveals a great deal more about author Graeme Bryce than it does Rashford or indeed anyone else:

‘The former England striker was criticised as lazy, by his former boss Ruben Amorim who accused him of not putting enough effort into training or matches during his time at Manchester United.’

A couple of things:

1) Unless his international retirement has passed Mediawatch by, 27-year-old Rashford with his 60 caps is not yet a ‘former England striker’.

2) Ruben Amorim at absolutely no stage has ever called Rashford lazy, at least publicly. Bryce seems to know this and thus did not use quote marks despite them being bandied around everywhere in football journalism nowadays, but in that case you cannot simply write in such a matter-of-fact way that this is something Amorim has done.

Amorim did call out Rashford for not doing “the maximum” in “every detail” of training and even “life”. But that is specifically not the same thing as being lazy, which is still a word the coach has not used. Amorim has said a great many things about Rashford, the most recent of which was that he “couldn’t get Marcus to see the way you’re supposed to play football and to train the way I see it”. The coach has not been overly complimentary of the player, certainly, but this is based on the Portuguese’s own exacting standards.

Never was Rashford ‘criticised as lazy by his former boss Ruben Amorim’. He has been criticised as lazy by Paul Parker but you need TRAINING if you think that carries even nearly the same heft.

Let’s get this parting started
It is weird that some feel a need to twist Amorim’s words because the man is already pretty quotable. It’s not even a month since he said they were “being the worst team maybe in the history of Manchester United”.

Yet the Daily Mirror website are for whatever reason compelled to pretend ‘Ruben Amorim sends parting message to Marcus Rashford and admits he’s relieved he’s gone’.

The only quote used in the story is this:

“Like we said before, we are fighting for our jobs until the summer and I am just focused on these games. Thankfully Marcus is in Birmingham now with Unai, so you can take these questions this month to another coach. We are just focused on our players.”

And from that it is fairly obvious that any Amorim ‘relief’ at Rashford leaving is based mainly on the idea that the assembled journalists will now have to come armed with different questions. He’s in for a shock – they will now just ask him for a judgement on how Rashford is doing at Villa instead – but that is a frankly abysmal ‘parting message’.

Word life
Perhaps Amorim and Rashford have more in common than they initially assumed because this is atrociously misleading from the Daily Mirror website too:

‘Marcus Rashford has one-word verdict after Ruben Amorim’s second brutal decision’

And really the joke is on anyone who clicked thinking it wouldn’t be Rashford replying to PSV signing Tyrell Malacia on loan by posting “Twinnyyyyy” with two heart emojis. Obviously.

The opening paragraph claims ‘Marcus Rashford sent a message to Ruben Amorim,’ which he absolutely didn’t unless ‘Ruben Amorim’ actually means ‘Tyrell Malacia’ in Dutch.

The fifth paragraph says Rashford ‘has now appeared to stick the boot into Amorim after hailing Malacia’s switch to the Dutch side,’ which he absolutely didn’t unless showing support for his friend is equivalent to ‘sticking the boot into’ someone else (which it isn’t).

The seventh paragraph states Rashford was ‘referencing that they had both secured moves away from United,’ which is fine unless you do some cursory research to find the pair are incredibly close and Rashford has referred to Malacia as ‘twinnyyyyy’ or a variation thereof in past social media posts, one of which was before Amorim even managed his first Manchester United game when Malacia returned from injury in an EFL Trophy game in November.

Mediawatch has already wasted far too much time on daft pedantry (for a change) but it surely shouldn’t be too much to ask that words and their definitions actually matter a little bit, even with ‘one-word verdicts’.

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Stanley cup
Confirmation of that being a perennially lost battle comes as soon as the MailOnline‘s homepage is loaded up and we are greeted with this leading opening paragraph headline:

‘Tottenham are branded ‘horrendous’ and ‘worse than Accrington’ as they’re torn apart by Sky pundits Redknapp and Carragher after their 4-0 capitulation against Liverpool’

The standfirst shouts ‘SPURS ‘WORSE THAN STANLEY”, which is an unexpected boost to the stock of Kubrick but also again just something which no-one has said.

Jamie Carragher did say Accrington “gave more trouble to Liverpool than Tottenham tonight” but… That. Is. Not. The. Same. Thing.

Don’t put something in quote marks if no-one has said it. It seems straightforward.

Release me
Massive fan of the MailOnline sexing up news of Matheus Cunha’s release clause thus:

‘Revealed: Matheus Cunha’s eight-figure release clause after he signed new Wolves deal amid interest from Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham’

Cue widespread shock at Wolves neither leaving themselves open to losing their best player for £9.9m, nor pricing clubs out of a move for a player who is absolutely not worth £100m.

That ‘eight-figure release clause’ is ever so mysterious. What a shame Sami Mokbel’s exclusive about a £62m release clause is rather undermined by colleague Jeorge Bird writing five days prior that ‘it is understood that Cunha’s new deal includes a release clause of £62.5million, which will be active from the summer’.

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Unai Emery has commented on how Marcus Rashford has settled in at Aston Villa following his January loan move from Manchester United.

Rashford left Man Utd towards the end of the January transfer window as he joined Aston Villa on loan with an option to buy.

This was a last resort for Man Utd as they would have preferred to keep their academy product, but his dire form over the past 18 months made a transfer necessary.

The appointment of new United head coach Ruben Amorim did not have the desired effect on Rashford’s performances and the forward announced at the end of 2024 that he is “ready” for a new challenge.

Rashford was linked with several European giants including Barcelona and AC Milan, but his huge salary and poor performances limited his options.

Aston Villa eventually decided to take a risk on Rashford after selling Jhon Duran to Al Nassr and Amorim has revealed a key reason behind the 27-year-old’s exit. 

“I couldn’t get Marcus to see the way you’re supposed to play football and to train the way I see it,” Amorim said.

READ: Big Weekend: Birmingham v Newcastle, Rashford, Man United, Slot, Madrid Derby

“Sometimes you have one player that is really good with one coach, and the same player with another coach is different.

“I wish the best to Rashford and to [Villa manager] Unai Emery, and they can connect because he’s a very good player.”

When asked whether Rashford told him he disagreed with his ideas about football, Amorim answered: “You know, like me, that it’s not the way that occurs.

“It’s something that you feel as a coach and as a player. It’s quite normal. It happened with a lot of coaches.

“The important thing is that I’m here saying that was my decision, like Ty [Malacia] and Antony was my decision to do these loans, and to keep some players even without any transfers.”

MORE MARCUS RASHFORD COVERAGE ON F365…
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Now, Emery has insisted that Rashford has been “fantastic” in training before they host Tottenham Hotspur in the FA Cup this weekend.

“I think he has huge potential to exploit,” Emery said.

“I don’t want to know the reason he is leaving Manchester but I am very happy keeping him here and try to exploit and recover his performances. My challenge with him is a huge challenge.”

He added: “Today he trained fantastic, tomorrow again, Sunday match. We are going to enjoy each step forward.

“Then, in the future, is only building in the present. If we try to get the future before the present it is impossible and we are going to crash.”

According to reports, three FC Barcelona stars ‘advised against’ signing Marcus Rashford from Manchester United during the winter transfer window.

At the end of 2024, Rashford announced his intention to leave Man Utd during the winter transfer window, admitting he was “ready” for a new challenge away from Old Trafford.

The England international had limited options in January as his poor performances over the past 18 months and massive salary impacted his chances of leaving.

It was widely reported that Barcelona were his preferred destination, but their financial woes proved a stumbling block as Rashford had to look for an alternative exit route.

AC Milan, Borussia Dortmund, Juventus and Napoli were among the clubs linked with Rashford, who eventually decided to join Aston Villa on loan with an option to buy for around £40m in the summer.

READ: Rashford seen TRAINING despite Amorim ‘lazy’ dig as Manchester United loanee sends ‘one-word verdict’

Considering Rashford’s reputation, it’s hard to see him improving Barcelona at this point as the Spanish giants have impressed in La Liga and the Champions League this season.

Despite this, a report in Spain claims Rashford was the ‘most convincing option’ after head coach Hansi Flick ‘requested the arrival’ of a new attacker, while the 27-year-old ‘personally offered himself’ to club chiefs Joao Laporta and Deco.

It is noted that Laporta and Deco were ‘very positive about this signing’, especially considering he could join ‘on very favourable terms’ with a loan fee of ‘three million euros’.

However, Barcelona’s failure to offload former Brighton loanee Ansu Fati ‘complicated’ the operation ‘as there was no space in the dressing room for the English star’.

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It’s also claimed Rashford was ‘banned by Barcelona’ as three stars – Gavi, Fermin Lopez and Pedri – ‘advised against’ the signing to ‘protect’ Ferran Torres, who would have been one of the Man Utd outcast’s ‘main victims’ facing a ‘sacrifice’ by Flick.

The former Man City attacker has only made seven La Liga starts this season but he netted a hat-trick in Barcelona’s 5-0 win against Valencia in the Copa del Rey on Thursday night.

The report adds:

‘They have a fantastic relationship with Torres, and they consider that he has always fulfilled his role whenever he has had to enter the field of play, and has shown that he can be a very valuable substitute and an important piece in the rotations.

‘The former Valencia and Manchester City player is also in a very good moment, as demonstrated by his hat trick at Mestalla, which has allowed him to reach 10 goals in all competitions, to which must be added three assists.

‘All these factors forced Laporta and Deco to forget about Rashford.’

Manchester United have been put on alert as one of their targets will almost certainly “have to” be sold by Borussia Dortmund if the Bundesliga side don’t reach the Champions League.

Dortmund are having a very poor season by their standards. Before their fifth-placed Bundesliga finish last season, they had not finished outside the top four since 2014/15.

At the moment this season, they are 11th in the table, though there is only four points separating them and fourth-placed RB Leipzig.

According to Christian Falk, if Dortmund don’t secure Champions League football, Gittens may have to be sold.

“We have to keep an eye on Jamie Gittens. If Dortmund doesn’t reach the Champions League, I think they will have to sell him,” he told Caught Offside.

“Bayern are interested, though I’m not sure if they would be prepared to spend their money on him. If they manage to sell [Mathys] Tel – and don’t move for [Christopher] Nkunku – there’s a chance. Otherwise, it’ll be difficult!”

Bayern will have competition, though, with a recent report stating Manchester United are ‘seriously interested’ in landing Gittens.

At the time he suggested his exit with no Champions League was likely, and he seems to have a more definitive view now, meaning United will be on alert.

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That there is such a small gap between Dortmund in 11th and Leipzig in fourth means there’s still a chance that they confirm Champions League football.

However, there is clearly a lot that could impact that, with the results of all six sides between them from now until the end of the season potentially getting between Dortmund and European football.

All Niko Kovac’s side can do is beat the sides in front of them, and hope they can do so often enough that the results of the sides around them are immaterial.

READ MORE: Man Utd to ‘accept significant loss’ to sell striker with Euro giants on ‘pole’ for ‘discounted’ transfer

Lecce president Saverio Sticchi Damiani has revealed that Manchester United dropped a “now or never” ultimatum after the Italian side told them they did not want to sell Patrick Dorgu in January.

United made two signings in January – Dorgu and Ayden Heaven. The former – an experienced left wing-back – should fit perfectly into Ruben Amorim’s system, which utilises wide defenders higher up the field.

United made an initial approach to Lecce, which was knocked back, but eventually managed to get the deal over the line. Their stance on the deal helped the signing come to fruition, as the Serie A side’s president revealed the pressure the Red Devils applied.

“It is our record transfer and it happens in our moment of great economic health,” he said.

“We said several times that Dorgu would not leave in January, and now I will explain why the opposite happened. Manchester United arrived, who made themselves heard with us and with the boy’s entourage, receiving an official response from us that I leave here, in which we said that we had no intention of letting Dorgu leave in January. And not talking about figures, not asking for increases.

“This, instead of stopping United, had the opposite effect. Manchester insisted, we asked several times to postpone everything until the summer, also promising the young man that he would not miss the opportunity.

“For us too it was a historic step, we just wanted to do it in July. The English communicated to us their desire, the club and their coach, to be immediate. There was an ultimatum – ‘now or never’ – also giving this message to the player himself.”

For Lecce, though they would have likely sold Dorgu in the summer to another side, they may not have gotten the same financial security from the deal that United offered, which was why they chose to sell.

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Fabrizio Romano has revealed the reasons the Red Devils went after Dorgu so hard in January, rather than waiting for the summer, were that there was competition then which could have seen them lose the race.

“Man United wanted to get the deal done in January as they were aware of Napoli and Juventus both keen on Dorgu for the summer transfer window,” he said.

READ MORE: Man Utd star told he’s ‘100%’ done at Old Trafford with ‘career over’ in ‘terrible’ situation