Owen Hargreaves urges Man Utd star to ‘come back’ after Ruben Amorim sacking | Football
Owen Hargreaves has urged Marcus Rashford to ‘come back’ to Manchester United following Ruben Amorim’s ‘surprising’ sacking.
Amorim lost his job at Old Trafford on Monday following poor performances on the pitch and growing tensions off it.
Despite Amorim taking aim at his bosses in recent days, Hargreaves was ‘surprised’ by United’s announcement and believes his former club were swayed by Chelsea’s recent decision to move on Enzo Maresca.
‘I was surprised, and I think everybody was surprised by the decision to sack Amorim,’ Hargreaves told TNT Sports.
‘United weren’t playing exceptionally well, but they were still in a position where finishing in the top four or five was realistic.
Get personalised updates on Manchester United every day
Wake up to find news on your club in your inbox every morning with Metro’s Football Newsletter.
Sign up to our newsletter and then select your team in the link so we can send you football news tailored to you.
‘The timing of the decision is a surprise, but I guess other things have come to a head which happens at big clubs like we saw with Chelsea and Enzo Maresca recently.
‘I think that situation had an impact on United and I think we might see a lot of changes in the next month or so with other managers after this massive domino has fallen.
‘At Chelsea, it seems there were a lot of cooks in the kitchen, and when a lot of people have opinions, not all of them can align.
‘Maybe something similar happened with Ruben and United and that’s why communication is super important.
‘I feel sorry for him, the club and the fans. At the end of the day, everyone is just trying to do their best.
‘Ruben managed a massive club in Portugal and had huge success, which meant everyone was excited to see what he could produce here.
‘Unfortunately, it didn’t materialise in the way he envisioned. I think his communication level was remarkable and, if anything, I think he overshared and communicated too much, but there’s no denying that he’s a top manager.
‘He has proven that, but this is a different league with greater competition and expectancy at Manchester United.
‘Ruben will be fine in the future because he’s an incredible communicator, he’s a smart guy, a gentleman and, hopefully, he’ll enjoy great success. I’m sure he wanted to finish the job here but it wasn’t meant to be.’
Amorim is the sixth permanent manager to lose his job at Old Trafford since Hargreaves’ former boss Sir Alex Ferguson retired in 2013.
The ex-Sporting boss was ruthless with his treatment of certain United players, some of whom ended up in Amorim’s bomb squad and trained away from the first team.
Amorim sanctioned Marcus Rashford’s loan move to Aston Villa last season and encouraged United to send him out on another loan over the summer.
Rashford has enjoyed a strong first-half to his Barcelona loan, scoring six goals and making eight assists in 16 games.
The 28-year-old has repeatedly insisted he hopes to make a permanent switch to Barca but Hargreaves hopes the ‘special player’ returns to his parent club in the summer.
‘I hope that Marcus comes back because he’s a special player,’ Hargreaves added. ‘I don’t know what happened between Marcus and Ruben, but I don’t think there’s any denying his talent.
‘I don’t think Marcus should’ve been in a position where he shouldered all the weight for everything.
‘In our team, he would’ve been the third or fourth guy, so he wouldn’t have to bare all the responsibility because a lot of that would’ve been taken off his shoulders.
‘There was too much emphasis on these young guys to be the main man, and they should never have found themselves in that position at just 20 years of age.
‘They needed a striker who was 26-28 years old and then the youngsters could have learned the ropes like everyone did previously at the club.
‘I think Marcus is a super talent and the club could use him.’
Hargreaves also hopes Kobbie Mainoo can revive his Manchester United career following Amorim’s exit.
Mainoo has asked to leave Old Trafford in each of the last two transfer windows after falling down Amorim’s pecking order.
‘With Kobbie, I think he’ll be straight back into the team with the side playing a back four,’ Hargreaves insisted.
Manchester United return to Premier League action against Burnley on Wednesday under interim manager Darren Fletcher.
Fletcher, the former United midfielder, will be in temporary charge of the Red Devils until they appoint a caretaker manager until the end of the season.
Manchester United will then appoint Amorim’s permanent replacement in the summer, with Oliver Glasner and Thomas Tuchel the two current favourites for the job.
For more stories like this, check our sport page.
Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on
Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
MORE: Paul Scholes tips Enzo Maresca for Premier League job after Chelsea exit
MORE: Nicky Butt tells Man Utd’s next manager to replace Erik ten Hag’s £50m signing
MORE: Liam Rosenior told he faces two ‘problems’ as Chelsea’s new head coach
Owen Hargreaves urges Man Utd star to ‘come back’ after Ruben Amorim sacking | Football
#Owen #Hargreaves #urges #Man #Utd #star #Ruben #Amorim #sacking #Football
