Man Utd have been warned that they have another Jesse Lingard situation on their hands with Marcus Rashford , according to former Premier League manager Sam Allardyce.

The Red Devils are struggling to score goals this season with only four Premier League sides scoring fewer goals than Man Utd this season.

Man Utd are currently 15th in the Premier League table and allowed one of their most lethal attackers in Rashford leave the club in the January transfer window.

Rashford completed a loan move late in the window to Premier League rivals Aston Villa with the Villans reportedly having a chance to complete a summer move for £40m.

Allardyce reckons we might see the best version of Rashford at Aston Villa after the England international contributed two assists in their recent win over Chelsea.

Former Premier League manager Allardyce said on the No Tippy Tappy Football podcast: “He [Rashford] doesn’t fit into that type of system.

“He’s got to prove himself for the first time in a long time. As a kid, he had to prove himself by being good enough to break into United’s first team, now he has to prove himself to the Aston Villa players.

“He’s going out there with a new manager and new teammates and that’s got to inspire him, rather than languishing at Man United.”

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Former Man Utd academy graduate Lingard struggled to reach his potential at the Red Devils and now plays for South Korean club FC Seoul.

And Rashford’s situation at Man Utd has reminded Allardyce of the same situation Lingard was in with the winger eventually turning down a permanent move to West Ham in favour of staying at Old Trafford.

Allardyce added: “It reminds me of Jesse Lingard, he was languishing at Man United and then Moyes rescued him.

“Lingard made the worst mistake ever not going with Moyes to West Ham. He went to Forest and just petered out again and now he’s somewhere obscure in South Korea.

“This was an England international player in his early 20s. Players moving is the biggest thing you can do.

“If you’re stagnating at your football club, pack your bag and move on, because your football career will soon be finished before you know it.”

Former Brighton striker Glenn Murray still thinks Rashford needs to boost his fitness levels to have the desired long-term impact at Aston Villa.

Murray said on Sky Sports: “I wouldn’t say he’s back yet, definitely more positive, and when he’s playing he’s impacting the game in a positive manner without any doubt.

“I quite like how he works with [Ollie] Watkins, how he can flip into that nine [striker position]. Watkins is just as comfortable going out to the left.

“Listen, I think he [Rashford] needs to get his fitness up, I don’t think his high-pressing actions are as good as others on the pitch so that’s something that he needs to work on if he’s gonna play regularly for Emery. But definitely, Marcus Rashford looks a lot happier.”

Liverpool boss Arne Slot has been banned for two matches by the Football Association after being sent off in the Merseyside Derby against Everton.

The Reds have been having a brilliant season with Slot’s Premier League leaders currently 11 points clear of second-placed Arsenal at the top of the league table.

Liverpool did have a the tiniest little wobble when they lost 1-0 to Plymouth Argyle in the FA Cup third round and were held to a 2-2 draw against Everton in the derby at the beginning of February.

At the end of the draw at Goodison – in which James Tarkowski thundered in a late equaliser for Everton – Slot was involved in an exchange with referee Michael Oliver, calling the Premier League official ‘a f***ing disgrace’.

Announcing the ban on Wednesday, the Football Association explained in a statement: ‘It was alleged that the Liverpool head coach acted in an improper manner and/or used insulting and/or abusive words and/or behaviour towards both the match referee and an assistant referee after the match had finished. Arne Slot admitted the charge, and the Regulatory Commission imposed a two-match touchline suspension and £70,000 fine.’

The FA added: ‘It was alleged that both clubs failed to ensure their players and/or technical area occupants did not behave in an improper and/or provocative way following the final whistle. Everton and Liverpool admitted the charges, and the Regulatory Commission imposed £65,000 and £50,000 fines on them respectively following a hearing.’

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After the match, former Premier League referee Keith Hackett had a pop at Oliver too, feeling there was no foul by Liverpool’s Ibrahima Konate on Everton forward Iliman Ndiaye, which was given as a free-kick and led to Beto’s opener.

Posting on X, Hackett wrote: ‘This was an incorrect award of a free kick that then went into to result in Everton scoring their opening goal.

‘A huge error!! By referee Oliver who did not have his best performance. He needs some coaching advice from the PGMOL. Then I look and see that Lee Mason is the Head of Coaching!!! Say no more.’

Both Abdoulaye Doucoure and Curtis Jones were sent off after the former celebrated in front of the Liverpool supporters at the end of the match and Hackett thought Oliver was ‘weak’.

Hackett continued: ‘The celebration of goals creates dangerous crowd surges. Thought Oliver was weak.’

The former referee added: ‘There was a lot wrong in this performance from Oliver. You are only has good as your last game. I would not be happy with that effort by him.’

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Atletico Madrid have reportedly eyed one of Manchester United’s summer signings as a potential recruit this summer.

Having spent just over £182million on five players during the 2024 summer window, United added Patrick Dorgu for £27million in January but there is talk of wholesale changes in 2025.

Given the concerns over Ruben Amorim’s style of play and his wishes to stick with a formation that favours three defenders at the back, a lot of players have been left alienated, playing in a system they don’t yet understand and one that doesn’t play to their strengths.

One player who fits this narrative is Manuel Ugarte who has been inconsistent, like many others, and had to contend with multiple different midfield partners such as Casemiro, Kobbie Mainoo, Christian Eriksen, Bruno Fernandes and Toby Collyer.

Despite his deal running until 2029, he is reportedly being targeted by Atletico Madrid. According to Spanish outlet Fichajes, Diego Simeone has a few options in mind to strengthen his midfield this summer.

Two midfielders listed are Newcastle United’s Bruno Guimaraes and Real Sociedad’s Martin Zubimendi who both are difficult deals to complete for different reasons. Guimaraes would be an extremely costly deal given his stature at St James’ Park while Zubimendi has multiple suitors in England and abroad.

Their last target on the list is United’s Ugarte, who signed for the club in the summer of 2024, penning a five-year deal in a deal worth £42million.

The report states: ‘Finally, Uruguayan Manuel Ugarte is also on Atletico’s wish list. The Manchester United player is not having the expected prominence at Old Trafford, which could facilitate his departure in the next transfer window.’

Given that there is likely to be a transfer revolution this summer given their incredibly poor form, it is naive to rule out a departure for the midfielder who has struggled for consistency.

An offer to join a thriving side where his aggressive-tackling nature would be championed would certainly be tempting given United’s shocking form that has left them 15th in the Premier League.

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Ally McCoist calls out Ugarte transfer

During the draw with Everton, Ally McCoist commented on the Uruguayan midfielder during the TV commentary on TNT Sports.

Ugarte has been known for his fire and passion and was later embroiled in a tunnel dust-up with James Tarkowski, with the pair sharing plenty of words across the 90 minutes but McCoist claimed that he lacked the true ‘intensity’ during the game.

“But United have got to lift and start asking questions of opponents. You need to ask a question of the opposition back-four. They haven’t done that.

“I just think about the middle of the park, Casemiro has been slightly better but I look at Ugarte, I’m not seeing it with him at this moment in time. I’m really not seeing it. Those two aren’t really handling the intensity.”

Former Man Utd boss Erik ten Hag has aimed a dig at his former players in his first interview since being sacked by the Old Trafford hierarchy.

The Red Devils have been terrible this season with Sir Jim Ratcliffe and INEOS choosing to sack Ten Hag in October and replace him with Ruben Amorim.

Man Utd have got even worse under the Portuguese head coach with Amorim winning just four of their 15 Premier League matches this season.

Raphael Varane revealed earlier this week that he fell out with Ten Hag during his time at Old Trafford with the Dutchman leaving the centre-back out for two months.

It’s a growing opinion from managers that modern players don’t respond as well to a direct approach to criticism as players from an older generation.

And Ten Hag, who won the League Cup and FA Cup during his tenure, was frustrated by his time at Man Utd with the Dutchman finding it hard to work with modern players.

Speaking to SEG Stories, Ten Hag said: “This generation usually find it difficult to deal with criticism. Criticism really gets to them.

“The generation that I grew up in had much thicker skin. You could be much more direct.

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“I was approached much more directly. If I would do that with my current group of players I would demotivate them.

“If you do that to the current generation they find it offensive.”

Ten Hag continued the Man Utd tradition of bringing through younger players with Kobbie Mainoo and Alejandro Garnacho coming through during his time there.

The former Man Utd boss added: “With this generation you choose different words and a different approach.

“(Sir Alex) Ferguson also belonged to the previous generation. With that generation you could be much more direct in your communication and approach.

“A player of this generation will feel ridiculed if you approach them like that.”

The ex-Ajax boss insisted that the main thing he missed about working at Man Utd was playing at Old Trafford.

Ten Hag continued: “I had already decided for myself, ‘Okay, I’m not doing anything until July 1.’

“If there’s one thing I miss it’s Old Trafford. You’re always working towards a dot on the horizon, but you never get to the horizon.

“We’ve had many highs, there is always room for improvement and good is not enough. You can do better.”

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