Manchester United and England forward Marcus Rashford has responded to a fan who described the way he is being treated as "absolutely disgusting" and "cruel".
Back in February, the 26-year-old hit back at those who have criticised his professionalism and commitment to boyhood club Manchester United in an interview with The Players' Tribune.
Rashford has been unable to replicate his form of last season, where he scored 30 goals and was rightfully named United's Player of the Year for the 2022/23 campaign.
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So far, he has netted eight goals in 42 games in all competitions for the Premier League club – a record that continues to raise eyebrows.
And as well as his form on the pitch, he received widespread criticism for being seen at a Belfast nightclub hours before reporting ill to first-team training at Carrington.
"Listen, I’m not a perfect person," he said in the interview with TPT. "When I make a mistake, I’ll be the first one to put my hand up and say that I need to do better but if you ever question my commitment to Man United, that’s when I have to speak up.
"It’s like somebody questioning my entire identity, and everything I stand for as a man. I grew up here. I have played for this club since I was a boy. My family turned down life-changing money when I was a kid so I could wear this badge."
Since hitting back at those who question his commitment to United earlier this year, Rashford has continued to receive criticism. In fact, on Friday morning at 12:36am, he gave an insight into his current situation.
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On Thursday afternoon, X user UtdParadigm posted on the social platform, saying: "The way Marcus Rashford is being treated is absolutely disgusting. It's cruel. It's abuse."
Hours later, the England forward quote tweeted the post. "I appreciate your support," he wrote. "It is abuse and has been for months. Enough is enough."
Rashford, who has been a regular under Erik ten Hag this season, opened up about some of the media coverage he has received this season during the previously mentioned interview.
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"I’m not trying to have a go at the media," he said. "I understand the game, you know what I mean? They’re not really writing about me. It’s like they’re writing about this character, 'Marcus Rashford'.
"It can’t just be about me as a 26-year-old lad on a night out, or a lad getting a parking ticket. It’s got to be about how much my car costs, guessing my weekly salary, my jewellery or even my tattoos.
"It’s got to be about my body language, and questioning my morals, and speculating about my family, and my football future. There’s a tone to it that you don’t get with all footballers. Let’s just leave it at that."
Rashford also spoke about his charity work during lockdown, and suggested that some criticism stems from those campaigns.
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"I think some of it goes back to the pandemic," he added. "I was just trying to use my voice to make sure that kids weren’t going hungry, because I know exactly how it feels.
"For some reason, that seemed to rub certain people the wrong way. It seems like they’ve been waiting for me to have a human moment so they can point the finger and say, “See? See who he really is?”
Featured Image Credit: X/@TPTFootball - Getty ImagesTopics: Manchester United, Premier League, Marcus Rashford, England
