Manchester City regected and subbed me because of my height now I’ve scored over 100 goals for their rivals
Highlights
Marcus Rashford almost ended up at Manchester City when he was a youngster.
Manchester City rejected Rashford for being small, leading him to Manchester United
Rashford has gone on to score more than 100 goals for the Red Devils since his stunning debut in 2016.
Marcus Rashford is the nearest thing to a club-legend that Manchester United have at the moment. With 131 goals in his 402 appearances for The Red Devils, Rashford has become near synonymous with the club he has played for since he was six-years-old – but were it not for the judgment of a single scout almost 20 years ago, things could have been very different.
Like many of United’s famed academy – Wes Brown, Danny Welbeck and Jesse Lingard, to name but a few – Wythenshawe-born Rashford came through the ranks at local juniors side, Fletcher Moss Rangers. Having caught the eye of several Premier League scouts, Rashford’s future services were being touted around by his brother Dwayne, who was looking to secure the best deal and environment for young Marcus.
Marcus Rashford
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Interest From Both Sides of Manchester
Rashford had plenty of suitors
Marcus Rashford scores for England on debut
Both Manchester sides were interested in the talented forward, but it was the red side of the city that would go on to benefit, as Fletcher Moss secretary – and member of the Manchester United scouting staff – Ron Jamieson would go on to explain.
“His brother Dwayne was with him when he came to us” Jamieson told The Times.
“He was touting him to Manchester City at the time, but the recruitment officer there didn’t fancy him because he was a bit on the small side and didn’t pick him up.
“We took him to the Champion of Champions tournament and all of the scouts were there. Everton were very keen, and Manchester United. It was advantageous for us to push him towards United so he went there, and the rest is history.”
Whilst Manchester City will no doubt look back upon that decision with some regret, they are at least not alone in having rejected a player for being too small; and actually once benefited from the reverse. Real Madrid passed on a certain David Silva, for supposedly ‘looking too small’ whilst on trial with them, early in his career.
Silva would go on to become one of the finest players the Premier League has ever seen for Manchester City, also winning two European Championships and a World Cup for his national side, across his 125 caps.
Marcus Rashford’s Manchester United Statistics
Appearances
402
Goals
131
Assists
66
Trophies
5
Goals vs Manchester City
6
Rashford not Alone
Lingard and Kane also rejected as youngsters
Ravel Morrison and Jesse Lingard
Manchester United teammate and lifelong friend of Rashford’s, Jesse Lingard, also experienced similar rejection earlier in his career, again due to his slight frame and lack of height versus others in his age bracket. Lingard would go on to make 232 appearances for United, before leaving in 2022, and also has 32 England appearances to his name to date.
On the subject of England internationals, England’s greatest ever goalscorer, Harry Kane, also missed out upon signing for a rival as a child. Kane was released from Arsenal’s academy for supposedly being ‘a bit chubby’, a judgment made by the club’s then head of development, Liam Brady. Not only has Kane gone on to become England’s highest ever scorer, with 66 goals in 98 caps, he also became arguably Tottenham’s greatest ever player, with an astonishing 280 goals in his 435 appearances.
Whilst Rashford is yet to hit the heights of Kane, he has at least gone on to become one of the greatest graduates of United’s academy, in the past 20 years. His 30 goals for United in the 2022/2023 season are still his best return to date, although his eight goals in 43 appearances last season have left many questioning if the talented forward is to have a long-term future at the club he loves.
Paris Saint-Germain head coach Luis Enrique in the dugout
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PSG have been linked to the forward for a number of seasons, with the Parisian club in the market for a high-profile replacement for Kylian Mbappe, who himself has just moved to Real Madrid. With PSG said to be on the brink of signing Napoli’s Victor Osimhen, however, it would appear that they have shifted their focus elsewhere, and a big-money move for Rashford may have to wait.
Rashford himself has remained quiet on his own future, having chosen to take an extended break from social media, following the challenging campaign in 2023-24. The forward was also said to have met with the United hierarchy ahead of the 2024-25 season, to thrash out a plan for his future, before then starting their first pre-season match against Rosenborg.
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