Rashford’s school meals campaign ‘too much for him’ claims Rooney

Wayne Rooney has suggested that Marcus Rashford’s campaigns for free school meals were ‘too much for him’ causing his performances to suffer. The Manchester United star has returned to form this season and has impressed for England at the World Cup topping the Three Lions scoring charts with three goals. 

Rashford spent months campaigning for the Government to increase their provision of free school meals during the Coronavirus pandemic. He forced Boris Johnson into a U-turn on the issue while the 25-year-old also received an MBE for his efforts in 2020. 

However, his on-field performances suffered over the same period with the forward irked by suggestions by manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer that he should prioritise football. He was particularly off the pace last season finding the net just five times in 32 appearances. 

He has returned to form in style this year, scoring eight and contributing three assists in 19 appearances in all competitions, making more headlines for his on-field performances than off-field campaigns. Former England captain Rooney believes this change is being reflected in his displays after taking on ‘too much’ over the past couple of years. 

“It looks like Marcus is in a much better place in his head and the big thing, for me, is that during Covid he did so much campaigning work and got involved with a lot of stuff off the pitch,” he wrote in the Times.

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“His achievements were incredible, but I think it might have been a bit too much for him. Rather than being able to just focus on his football, there was a lot on his plate, whereas what we’ve seen this season is very much a focus on football first rather than anything else. From some of the goals he has scored, you can see he is in a different headspace.

“I watched Marcus develop at Manchester United and there are not many players with his speed and direct running at goal. You never know how much football players these days actually watch but I know from being in camps that at tournaments you sit around together watching a lot of games as a group.” 

Rashford is fresh off the back of scoring a double against Wales in the final group match. Rooney was keen to add his voice to the chorus of calls for him to start against Senegal in the last-16 clash suggesting he can emulate what Kylian Mbappe does for France. 

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“You see his confidence and his willingness to run in behind. He always wants the ball,” he said. “That Marcus Rashford is a real asset for England. If Harry Kane is going to drop deep and play through balls then Marcus, with those runs, is probably the best player for Harry to play with.

“And I reckon, watching France, Marcus will be watching Kylian Mbappe and how, when he gets the ball on the left, he is so fast and direct. I reckon Marcus will be looking at Mbappe and thinking, ‘I can do that’.”

However, Rooney is set to be left disappointed with reports suggesting Rashford is set to start on the bench with Phil Foden and Bukayo Saka joining Kane in attack. The 25-year-old will look to make a difference as a substitute as he seeks to continue his goalscoring form.