For different reasons, Gareth Southgate was probably looking forward to Manchester United’s first Premier League game of the season with as much groundless hope as the club’s faithful support.
The World Cup is little more than three months away and, when selecting his squad, the England manager would love to have a host of attacking options to choose from. And no doubt he would also like his central defensive linchpin to show some imperious club form.
Instead, after leaving Old Trafford on Sunday, Southgate must have been thinking the same as everybody else who had been in the stadium and the same as all those who had watched on television. What has happened to Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho? And is Harry Maguire ever going to recapture his best form? Among a lot of other things people were thinking, of course.
There was a time when Rashford and Sancho, who both missed penalties in the Euro 2020 final shoot-out last summer, were very much key parts of England’s attacking future. Now, the chances of either of them making Southgate’s final squad for Qatar 2022 are probably slim.
Recently, no-one has been setting the Old Trafford record books alight at Old Trafford but Rashford’s statistics are alarming. He has gone 13 Premier League appearances without a goal, 11 without an assist. He has scored only six Premier League goals in his last 38 appearances, contributing a mere five assists in that time.
After his £73million switch from Borussia Dortmund, Sancho’s figures are equally unimpressive - three Premier League goals and three assists in 30 outings. But never mind their figures, 24-year-old Rashford and 22-year-old Sancho have been consistently failing to make any sort of impact in matches.
At least Rashford got himself into a couple of scoring positions on Sunday and was only denied by a first-class Robert Sanchez save but, despite an encouraging pre-season, he still looked devoid of confidence. And those who reckon Rashford’s career might only take an upturn if he leaves Old Trafford - and his contract expires next year - saw nothing to change their minds.
Sancho was probably one of United’s slightly better performers against Brighton but still looks a pale imitation of the player who ran riot in the Bundesliga and who was a thrilling young addition to Southgate’s squad. To repeat, few are pulling up any trees for United and that obviously includes Maguire, who again looked anything but accomplished against the lone threat of Danny Welbeck at the weekend.
It appears that Maguire has a plentiful supply of credit in the international bank and the same would probably be true if Luke Shaw’s form was to dip, although Southgate would not want his left-back to be ousted at club level by Tyrell Malacia. But it is the form of Rashford and Sancho over the past 12 months that must be the big disappointment for the England boss, not to mention for the legions of United supporters and those who have managed the club.
Of course, the Premier League season is only ONE game old and Sancho and Rashford have a fair amount of time to get back into the sort of brilliant form we know they are capable of. “They have got a lot to do to get back into the squad,” Southgate said when he omitted Rashford and Sancho from his last squad. And judging by their form over the past year - and NOT just in the defeat to Brighton - that is an understatement.
