Former England and Arsenal striker Ian Wright made a statement these few days that Solskjaer, acting under mounting pressure to turn around the club’s situation, had placed his own needs over and above those of his star player, Marcus Rashford.
Jamie O’Hara, the former Tottenham midfielder, who sustained a similar single stress fracture injury to Rashford’s when he was at Portsmouth, was befuddled by the way Rashford’s back injury was approached by the United management. The injury he had himself sustained became a double stress fracture because he had thrown caution to the winds and had continued playing and finally had to take recourse to surgery in 2010. This ultimately left him out in the cold for nine months. He says United should have exercised greater caution and taken better care of Rashford. He told Talksport:
“I can’t believe that the medical team at Man United have allowed him [Rashford] to carry on playing once … they must have known he had a stress fracture. They must have been worried about his back, he’s gone for an X-ray… There needs to be a time when there is protection for a player who is at Manchester United, a massive player, a young kid, where the medical team go, ‘You need to step out because this is only going to get worse.”
“Now United have lost him at the most crucial period of the season and potentially England have lost him. I’m gobsmacked they’ve allowed him to continue playing …”
It’s odd now, in retrospect, to reflect on Solskjaer now claiming that the striker’s back injury just prior to the Wolves match was only ‘minor’ then, despite he himself having admitted after the Norwich game that Rashford was playing despite having an injury that needed managing. He had even conceded after the Wolves match that the player had been hampered by existing back problems. He was aware, as were others at United, that Rashford had long been resorting to using a Melmak fracture healing device since his youth football days before games and at home. Just as he had been doing the same this season to alleviate the acute pain.
The heavy toll on Rashford’s body and back must have been quite debilitating as no player in the League has played more games than he did since debuting in February 2016. Last month itself he racked up no less than eight games in 28 days!
Solskjaer is clearly facing an uphill having to cope without his leading scorer on hand to spearhead the attack as he continues to put together some kind of a game plan to finish within the League’s top four positions. It didn’t require a strategist to see that United’s attack lacked concerted presence without Rashford against Liverpool on Sunday. As such, Anthony Martial and Mason Greenwood seem to be the best available strikers at present to inflict any damage to the rivals for the Burnley game. Manchester United currently stand fifth in the Premier League, with five points separating them and fourth-placed Chelsea as both race for the Champions League qualification spots.
“That is the million-dollar question for us because Marcus has been fantastic,” Solskjaer said.“
Yes, we all know how fantastic a striker Marcus Rashford is, Ole. But that certainly doesn’t mean you can so arbitrarily dispense with the responsibility you carry as a manager to protect his wellbeing just to save your own butt!