Former Super Eagles captain, John Mikel Obi, has backed Manchester United forward, Marcus Rashford to turn his poor form around, Soccernet.ng reports.
The 26-year-old Englishman had a stellar campaign in the 2022/2023 English Premier League season, scoring 17 goals and providing five assists in 35 league games, but the seasons after have been subpar. He’s scored seven goals and provided three assists in 35 games since then.
His huge dip in form saw him excluded from Gareth Southgate’s England team for the EURO 2024 tournament, and with the new Premier League season underway, the 2017 UEFA Europa League winner has come under fire.
Speaking after Manchester United’s loss to Brighton and Hove Albion on Saturday, Mikel shared his honest opinion on Rashford, admitting there’s something wrong, but maintaining belief in the versatile forward to turn things around.
“It’s a tough one to say, but before he signed a new contract, he was on fire, the Rashford we all knew, the one that burst onto the scene, but he signed the deal and it all went down. Nobody can put a finger on what’s wrong with him, but he’s done a lot off the pitch, with the kids and where he came from, and all that is fantastic, but you have to do your job as a footballer.”
“Is it a confidence issue, I don’t know. Things are just not working for him. We don’t know if it’s an injury or something, but we need to know what’s wrong, maybe a discussion should be had at the club. I think there’s a lot Marcus can still offer to Manchester United. I think it’s not time to say goodbye yet. Maybe it’s a tactical thing or a training thing, or is it him, it’s all needed to be done. It’s been going on for a while, but I think he can Manchester United get back to where they need to be,” Mikel said on the Obi One Podcast.
However, the ex-Chelsea man isn’t a big fan of Manchester United’s head coach, Erik Ten Hag. Speaking about the manager, the 2012 UEFA Champions League winner said;
“I don’t know about him. Whenever I hear him speak, there’s so much negativity from him, it’s always someone else’s fault. It’s always the players’ fault. If Rashford isn’t performing, he has some questions to answer.”
Mikel came under fire from Nicolas Jackson after Chelsea cruised to a 6-2 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers during the weekend. with the Senegal striker telling the Super Eagles legend to keep his mouth shut.