Marcus Rashford loves ‘fantastic’ manager set to take the Man Utd job | Football | Sport
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has become the leading candidate to assume control of Manchester United from Darren Fletcher on an interim basis following Ruben Amorim’s dismissal. A return to the Theatre of Dreams could materialise just months after Marcus Rashford praised his previous tenure at the helm. The Norwegian tactician, who has been out of work since parting ways with Besiktas last year, is understood to be among the leading contenders alongside Michael Carrick and Ruud van Nistelrooy for the temporary position.
The club are opting to delay appointing a permanent successor to Amorim until the summer transfer window. Solskjaer has now become the bookmakers’ preferred choice for the role and possesses intimate knowledge of the club, having dedicated 11 years as a player at Old Trafford before managing the side for three seasons between 2018 and 2021. He maintains close relationships with several United squad members and has recently offered warm praise for Bruno Fernandes and Harry Maguire.
Rashford, who is presently on loan at Barcelona from United, retained fond memories of working under Solskjaer, experiencing some of his finest performances during the club legend’s reign. The striker told Danish broadcaster TV2 in October last year: “Ole is a fantastic person.
“I loved playing under him. I can speak for many of the players at Manchester United when I say that we enjoyed playing for him. We played good football under Ole. It was a very successful period for me personally. He is a fantastic person, and I don’t have a bad word to say about him.”
Rashford revealed he maintains contact with Solskjaer “from time to time”, though he admitted that “it’s been a while now” since their last conversation.
The England international featured more frequently and found the net more often under Solskjaer than any other United manager. Rashford registered 55 goals and 36 assists over 135 appearances during that period.
Among Erik ten Hag, Mourinho and Solskjaer, the homegrown talent also achieved his most efficient scoring rate whilst working alongside the Norwegian. He netted once every 182 minutes, in contrast to once every 199 under Ten Hag and once every 251 during Mourinho’s reign.
Solskjaer initially assumed caretaker responsibilities at United following Mourinho’s dismissal in December 2018, before securing the permanent position three months afterwards. His spell in charge spanned just under three years altogether, with Michael Carrick and subsequently Ralf Rangnick serving as interim bosses before Ten Hag ultimately assumed control.
During a November appearance on The Rest is Football, Solskjaer discussed Rashford, stating: “I’ve not spoken to Marcus since I left. I text him a little bit, but circumstances.
“I don’t know what’s happened in his life, but you can see he’s certainly enjoying it now in Barcelona. It looked like he didn’t enjoy himself here. I don’t think that’s just Man United [not enjoying it], it’s everywhere.
“All the pressures, every single one is different, we don’t know what’s happened to the players when they walk in in the morning, grumpy, that’s the manager’s job: ‘What’s up? I can see something’s wrong.’ We don’t know what’s happened, we just want him to do well.
“He’s an incredible player when he’s in form and happy; he’s got that energy. I go back to Erling Haaland, just the energy that he shows all the time, when he’s on the pitch, he shows that enthusiasm and energy, that’s the least. But what is it? Life? Too many games? We don’t know, but he’s found the right balance.”
