The Manchester United forward has been a shadow of the player who scored 30 goals in 56 games the previous season, earning himself a new contract worth an estimated £325,000 per week.

Rashford’s struggles this season have been evident from the beginning, as he has only scored twice in 21 games. Alejandro Garnacho and Antony, who have been heavily criticized, are currently starting ahead of Rashford in the last four games.

Rashford has been told that he can regain his best form by following the example set by a Manchester United teammate who has persevered through a similar situation.

Last season it would have been unthinkable for the 26-year-old to have been left out of the starting line-up to face bitter rivals Liverpool, but that was exactly the case on Sunday as he started the Anfield draw on the bench before being introduced for Garnacho with 20 minutes to go.

By contrast, midfielder Scott McTominay has gone from strength to strength since being introduced back into the side, becoming an indispensable member of Erik ten Hag’s starting XI.

The United boss wanted to sell the Scotland international over the summer but has now scored six goals in 19 games this season, including braces against Brentford and Chelsea.

Indeed, McTomiay has now emerged as one of United’s most consistent performers in a season of complete inconsistency for the Red Devils so far.

The midfielder’s form was even rewarded with the captaincy on Merseyside, as Ten Hag turned to the Scot in the absence of the banned Bruno Fernandes.

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McTominay setting an example for Rashford to follow

And former United striker Dimitar Berbatov believes that Rashford could learn plenty from how his in-form teammate has turned his own campaign around.

“Marcus Rashford was sick in the week, along with Antony Martial, so dropping the England forward was justified,” the former Red Devils striker told Betfair.

“But even if he wasn’t sick, it’s still the manager’s decision because Rashford has been out of form. When he came on, he didn’t do anything spectacular.

“Giving the captaincy to a younger player who is out of form can help them but in this case it was given to the in-form Scott McTominay and he was fantastic.

“There are a lot of similarities between Scott’s situation and Marcus Rashford right now. He was struggling and no one knew if he was staying at United in the summer.

“Then all of a sudden he scored a few important goals, including his match-winning brace against Brentford, and he kept pushing to start. He’s now captained the team so maybe Rashford can see how McTominay has turned around his situation and take something from it.

“Scott knows exactly what he needs to do. Fight for the team, sacrifice himself for the team. He’s the type of player every team needs. Without players like him, teams can’t go on to do big things, trust me.

“Giving McTominay the armband will elevate him mentally. It will allow him to think more seriously and take more responsibility. It will build him into a better man and player.”

Meanwhile, Fernandes is set to reclaim the captaincy when United head to West Ham in their next Premier League outing on Sunday.

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has dropped a major hint on the player he would most like to replace Mohamed Salah at Anfield by naming a West Ham star as his “favourite player outside Liverpool in the Premier League.”

The Egyptian superstar’s Liverpool contract is set to expire in summer 2025, some 18 months from now, and with interest from Saudi Arabian side Al-Ittihad likely to attract another bid.

Replacing his goal-contribution will be far from easy for Klopp, giving the incredible record at Anfield that Salah boasts. And the 31-year-old was on the mark once again on Wednesday night, when stepping off the bench to score Liverpool’s fourth goal of the night in a 5-1 win over West Ham in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals.

That takes Salah’s tally to 201 goals in 329 appearances for the Reds, incredible numbers for a winger.

Speculation on who Liverpool will turn to replace him remains uncertain if and when the time comes. And one name that has been persistently linked is Bayern Munich star Leroy Sane, who boasts many similar assets to Salah.

Indeed, earlier this week Klopp was advised to cash in on Salah if offered £150m and bring in the former Manchester City man if the opportunity presented itself.

However, while Klopp is yet to comment on such speculation, underlining only the importance of Salah to Liverpool and standing firm against a Saudi push to sign him earlier this season, there is another name that persistently pops up.

Klopp admires West Ham star in hint at Salah replacement

And, it seems the Liverpool manager may well have his eyes on Jarrod Bowen as his dream Salah replacement after paying the West Ham star the biggest compliment before the Hammers’ match against his side on Wednesday night.

It is thought that Liverpool have had their eye on Bowen, who joined West Ham in a bargain £22m deal from Hull in January 2020, for a number of years now with their scouts tracking his development.

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And in a big hint he’s the player Klopp would love to sign, the German said of the 27-year-old and in the game in general: “In quarter-finals, everybody can smell the chance to go through.

“In a very busy period, finding a line-up which can go and go and go because West Ham is a physically really strong team, David [Moyes] is doing an incredible job, I have to say. They are good again, through in Europe, it’s really impressive. Injuries issues as well.

“Playing without [Michail] Antonio, and Bowen steps up in that position – probably my favourite player besides my players – it’s just great what he’s doing and how he develops.”

Of course, admitting an admiration for a player does not mean a move to prise him away from the London Stadium will be made, though it does perhaps drop a hint over what is to come.

Signing the 52-goal Hammers man, however, will be far from a simple task. He has recently signed a new contract at the club, tying him to the Irons until summer 2030 – as big an arrangement as you can probably give a 27-year-old.

We have also recently revealed that West Ham value the player at £100m, with any potential deal likely to cost Liverpool a new club-record fee.

The Red Devils showed great promise in the first season of Ten Hag’s leadership, finishing third in the Premier League, winning the Carabao Cup, and reaching the FA Cup final. However, the 2023–24 campaign has so far proved to be a major step backwards with Manchester United seemingly lurching from one crisis to another and seeing a number of their top stars fail to perform.

According to reports, Manchester United is ready to make a surprise move to sign Real Sociedad winger Takefusa Kubo after Erik ten Hag reached an unsatisfied conclusion regarding one of his own major acquisitions.

Now with the club’s new investor – the British billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe – set to take charge of all transfer dealings at Old Trafford, it seems the club are gearing up for a number of much-needed upgrades across the park.

First up, it’s reported Ratcliffe already has his eyes on a possible upgrade for struggling summer signing Andre Onana, with an elite LaLiga goalkeeper reportedly being strongly looked at.

And there is also speculation that the Red Devils are seeking a midfield upgrade too with Sofyan Amrabat failing to make the grade and with Casemiro seemingly eyeing up a lucrative move to Saudi Arabia.

However, it is another of Ten Hag’s failed signings who could find himself soon being replaced with the The Sun suggesting Ten Hag has reached an unwanted conclusion over the performances of Brazil winger Antony.

The Dutchman paid a radically overly-inflated £85m to reunite with his former Ajax player at Old Trafford in summer 2022. And while the winger scored on his debut pointing towards a successful future, he has badly struggled since.

Ten Hag wants Kubo as Antony replacement at Man Utd

Indeed, the 23-year-old has had a miserable time of things this season, taking time out the side to defend himself against serious allegations made by a former partner, and also struggling to show anything like the form that persuaded United to shell out the second biggest fee in their history.

So far this season, Antony does not have a single goal or assist to his name from 18 appearances. And overall, he only has a miserable eight goals and two assists from 62 outings in total.

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Now it seems Ten Hag, after talks with Ratcliffe, has come to the realisation that United are in need of a serious upgrade if the team are to challenge for top honours again.

As a result, it’s reported that United are to make a big push to sign Real Sociedad star Kubo, who has really hit the straps since departing Real Madrid back in summer 2022.

The 22-year-old Japan winger has an impressive 15 goals and 13 assists from 67 appearances for Sociedad since making the switch, going from strength to strength in that time.

This season, he already has six goals and four assists from 23 appearances, having also illustrated his qualities in the Champions League.

Now it’s claimed United have been watching Kubo extensively and are preparing to make their move.

The Sun now suggests an offer in the region of €50m (£43m) will be enough to convince Sociedad to cash in, though any sale looks unlikely to go through midway through a season in which Imanol Alguacil’s side are already through to the Champions League knockout stages.

Barcelona boss Xavi also a fan of Kubo

However, a summer move looks very much on the cards with Ratcliffe and Ten Hag seemingly setting their hearts on bringing the 29-times Japan winger to Old Trafford.

While Sociedad would ideally like their winger to stay, his sale could help prevent the need for Sociedad to cash in on another of their prized assets in midfielder Martin Zubimendi.

The 24-year-old has been scouted by United, Barcelona and Arsenal in recent months and is also rated in the €50m bracket.

Meanwhile, Barca boss Xavi has also spoken about Kubo in glowing terms recently, describing the Japanese attacker as a top-tier talent.

“Takefusa Kubo is a world-class player. Not only when playing with the ball, but also when he doesn’t have the ball, he can do his best,” Xavi said.

Kubo, who counts Real Mallorca, Getafe and Villarreal among his former loan clubs, has himself said of his development: “This year I want to be important, just like last year but I also want to appear in those moments that the team has the need.”

Now it remains to be seen if that progress will be rewarded with a lucrative summer 2024 switch to Old Trafford.

After playing with Kylian Mbappe, Lionel Messi, and Cristiano Ronaldo, Pablo Sarabia naturally wants to know who is the best.

After working alongside Messi, Mbappe, and Neymar in France, the Spanish midfielder, who is currently at Wolves, was on the rosters of Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain. At Santiago Bernabeu, he witnessed Portuguese sensation Ronaldo up close.

It is not easy to rank those legendary forwards, but Sarabia told talkSPORT of his time spent training with the greatest of all time: “It is amazing because it is a dream to play with these players. I learned a lot because when you are training with these team-mates, these players, it is incredible. The goals, the assists, it is very important to try to learn in this moment and in training every day. They are amazing players. Outside the pitch these are very good people and because of that it is a reference for me and also [that to my son].”

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THE BIGGER PICTURE

Sarabia went on to say when asked to rank Ronaldo, Messi and Co: “It’s a very difficult question. It’s Cristiano because his mindset is totally incredible. It’s very hard. Neymar, his ability to be different than the other players, it’s possible to do everything, I’ve never seen anything like it. He has a lot of quality with the ball, it’s incredible. With Messi, everyone knows his capacity, the ability to score, to find the solution.”

WHAT NEXT FOR MESSI & RONALDO?

Messi and Ronaldo have found themselves at the centre of a drawn out GOAT debate for some time, with both earning plenty of supporters for their respective cause. They have 13 Ballons d’Or between them, with Messi considered to be the more naturally gifted performer, while Ronaldo’s relentless work rate has carried him to the very top of the game.