Gareth Southgate "wouldn't be pleased" with Marcus Rashford's England withdrawal and subsequent trip away, according to TalkSport's Tony Cascarino.
The Manchester United star has been in sensational form this term and is enjoying his best ever year in front of goal. Rashford has been electric since returning from the World Cup, but is unavailable for the recent set of international games against Italy and Ukraine due to injury.
Rashford, who withdrew after picking up a knock in the FA Cup win over Fulham, has since jetted off to New York with his partner, which has divided opinion. The forward has now missed five of England’s last six non-tournament internationals and Cascarino believes his decision won't sit well with Southgate.
He said: "The manager's not pleased with that - why would he be? With his withdrawal, how can you decide on a player if he's not present and he's not be present enough. England weren't aware of a trip to New York - that is going to frustrate Gareth. He wants ultimate loyalty."
Rashford is by no means a guaranteed starter for the Three Lions despite his impressive form. Harry Kane commands the No 9 role but either side of him Southgate opted to start Bukayo Saka and Jack Grealish in the win over Italy. Raheem Sterling is also an option when available, as is Phil Foden.
Despite Cascarino's comments Southgate maintains that Rashford is free to spend his time how he wishes once it becomes clear he won't be playing. The England boss then went on to say his focus was on the current squad, but would've wanted the United man if possible.
“Once Marcus is ruled out of the squad, it’s entirely up to him how he spends his time," he claimed. "The players don’t get a lot of breaks and I’m sure some of them will be flying off after tomorrow’s game if they get 48 hours off with the schedule as it is. We are always linking with clubs on scans and assessments.
“There is also how every individual player feels, so there is a lot involved. I am always working with the players on what the best solution is for them. Of course, we always want the players and we always want to work with them as often as we can. In every squad we have, we always lose a couple. My focus then has to be on the group that are here, and how do we win the games?”
Southgate added: “Marcus is in good form and we’d love to have had him as an option for this camp - but we haven’t got him." England take on Ukraine at Wembley on Sunday night after beating the Azzurri in Naples on Thursday.
