Rio Ferdinand issues damning verdict of Marcus Rashford with warning he must listen to

Rio Ferdinand has issued a stern warning to Manchester United star Marcus Rashford.

Ahead of the weekend’s FA Cup tie against Newport County, United forward Rashford reportedly missed training after reporting ill.

However, it was then claimed that Rashford was seen in a nightclub in Belfast, Northern Ireland, the night before he missed training.

Against Newport on Sunday, Rashford was left out of the squad by manager Erik ten Hag, who stated the situation is an internal matter.

Speaking on the latest episode of his podcast, former United defender Ferdinand said: “The way the manager answered the question, he flatlined it as if to say he's dealing with this behind the scenes. Trust me. Something is not right.

“People stepped out of line in my era, I did. But I would like to think that more often than not, most of the time if not all, my professionalism around training was right. We tried to go out at the right times. You can't judge it against my era, we were flying, we were winning everything so you're going to get grace on a lot of things. You have to have that self awareness - 'am I putting myself in a position where people can pick at me?’.”

Getty

Ferdinand continued: “The way the manager responded to the question, tells me he's not happy with what's happened, there is something wrong. He's gone outside of the boundaries that have been set. He has to work that out. The club is all over the place. Players in his position have been hammered by the club, one has gone out on loan to Dortmund, one is not at the club anymore, the other one is on a mad charge or accusation.

“There is a lot of noise around the club. You're one of the experienced players now, keep that noise down, that's your duty. You're one of the leaders now, like it or not. You've got to be aware enough that when you're not doing well as a club, as a team, and you're not hitting the standards we know you're about, you've got to be aware.”