Gary Neville has questioned the professionalism of Marcus Rashford and Casemiro after they flew to the United States during Ruben Amorim’s first fortnight in charge of Manchester United.
The international break saw both players travel to the US, with Rashford photographed watching an NBA game between New York Knicks and Brooklyn Nets at Madison Square Garden, while Casemiro posted pictures of himself and his family at Disney World on Instagram.
Suggesting one or both of the players had flown via Portland, where his brother Phil coaches, Neville told his Stick to Football podcast: “I’m not that wound up about Rashford and Casemiro going over to the United States, but what I’m asking is, if you’ve got a four-day break, Portland is a 12-hour flight and an eight-hour time difference, your jet lag is bad, and you feel a bit like…
“I’m asking the question based on professionalism – you’re playing badly, the team are losing, your 13th in the league, and there is a new manager coming in – would you choose that trip as a break to recharge your batteries? That’s not a recharging trip. It’s not right, that.”
He went on: “The professionalism, looking after your body and making sure you’re best prepared for the next training session is critical to every decision you make during the season,” Neville told his Stick to Football podcast.
“He [Rashford] has got a mental break, he’s got to get away and has got to rest with friends – then you talk about the choice of venue, how far do you fly, what’s the time difference, is that going to give a jetlag issue, is that going to give a stiffness issue from being on a flight for 12 hours?
“This is on Casemiro more than Rashford but, if I’m 30 years old and I’m looking after my body – and he’s won five Champions Leagues and is an unbelievable player, but if he was away with Brazil for 10 days, we would say he would struggle this weekend because he’s been away.
“They have chosen that international break. If you are talking about the minor details in being as professional as you can be and as prepared as you can be for a training session on a Monday night, that isn’t the best choice of venue.”
In January, Rashford was disciplined by then United manager Erik ten Hag for calling in sick after allegedly partying in Belfast the previous evening.
The striker’s form has nosedived during the past two seasons and he has not played for England since being left out of Gareth Southgate’s European Championship squad.
Neville’s opinion of his and Casemiro’s stateside trip was not shared by podcast co-host Ian Wright when asked if he would travel to the US.
Wright said: “If it’s my time off then, yes, I’d do it. Simply because it’s my time off. If you’re going for three or four days, that jet lag won’t cause you too much of a problem.”
Amorim’s first game in charge of United is at Ipswich Town on Sunday.
