Catch a falling star? Marcus Rashford was the man Dominic Cummings warned Boris Johnson to take on at his peril, a shining light in difficult times, an exemplar of the working-class hero.
Having transcended football, time and events have been unkind. Particularly in football terms. Rashford became the usually unwitting symbol of the collapse of an empire. Fans didn’t used to turn on their own but at Manchester United he became a lightning rod, eventually made a scapegoat by an incoming manager looking to crack heads. Rashford, a player of grace in full flight, was never one to exude blood, sweat and tears. By the end, the body language, the off-field distractions and accompanying suspicions had destroyed the fraternity once shared with United fans.
