
Marcus Rashford should be very, very excited after he got on loan at Aston Villa.
But it is less about Villa, no lack of respect for the Midlanders who are flying high, currently in the Champions League last 16 and haunting a top four place in the Premier League.
It is more about Manchester United – once the largest team in the world, with the best manager, a team of elite players and trophies that come out of their ears.
And now? The Red Devils are 13th in the Premier League with an unproven boss in Ruben Amorim, a series largely too much paid and left behind flops and no title since the last season of Sir Alex Ferguson, 2012-13.
On paper it should be rosy for the red half of Manchester with many talented players, such as Bruno Fernandes.
Their ability to beat rivals for signing many sought after stars, including Matthijs de Ligt, Leny Yoro, Mason Mount, Joshua Zirkzee, Manuel Ugarte, Rasmus Hojlund and much more.
The transfer of former world-complaining Real Madrid star Casemiro was a certain coup.
There is even an influx of talented young people who break into the team, the most Kobbie Mainoo.
So what the hell is going on at Old Trafford? How are their top goals pronounced for the most part and the incredible range of talent in the team struggle so much?
Given how many managers United have gone through since Fergie left, it is starting to look less and less like the managers … and you can hardly blame the players for a 12 -year -old malaise.
What is perhaps the most told is how many players stop with Man Utd and become world -witers again.
In recent years we have seen the will of Romelu Lukaku, Memphis Depay, Wilfried Zaha and Angel di Maria – to name just a few – with United and thrive somewhere else.
And the theme went well in this season … with Rashford the newest Big-Note Star to jump ship, which on loan from Aston Villa until the end of the season, at least.
While we are preparing for Rashford's debut for the Midlanders, Sunsport takes a look in seven stars that enjoy a monster season that recently stopped Old Trafford.
David de Gea
He won the Premier League in the last season of Fergie, as well as two Prem Golden Gloves, Five Man Utd Player of the Season Gongs and Five Prem Team of the Season departments.
And yet the Spaniard, now 34, seemed a shell of his former self.
A series of controversial blunders seemed to crush his self -confidence and United quickly went publicly in search of a new keeper – someone who was better with his feet.
De Gea was released in the summer of 2023 and spent a year unemployed before Fiorentina came to beat.
And since then, the ex-Atletico Madrid stopper seems to be a reborn man and to love life clearly.
After he was limited to two conference competition matches to start his Viola career, De Gea quickly became the Serie A Giants' No1 and this season was even statistically the best shot stop in Europe until December.
You would now have bet united fans now between the sticks …
Chris Smalling
The 10 -year -old spell of Smalling at United saw him give more than 300 performances -in which time he won two Premier League titles, the FA Cup, League Cup and Europa League.
But when he left for Roma in 2019, it seemed that his shares fell out of grace in Old Trafford and that it was unlikely that he would ever add to his 31 English caps.
That was until he started producing some sensational displays for the Italian giants.
He joined the club permanently in 2020 and flourished even further under the former man UTD -Baas Jose Mourinho, which helped the club to the Europa Conference League Glory and the Europa League final.
While Smalling, 35, never received another England insert, despite the fact that he apparently came close, he continues to dominate in Italy before he came to Saudi side Al-Fayha.
Alvaro Carreras
United dived to sign Alvaro Fernandez Carreras from Real Madrid in 2020, when he was only 17.
After a few years in the youth team, De Hoop High was the Spaniard the answer to the well -documented problems of the club at Left Back.
He was lent to Preston, Granada and Benfica before he finally joins the Portuguese giants with a permanent deal last summer.
United earned only £ 5 million to sell the defender, 21, but has now sent scouts to view him with a view to resigning him again.
Worrying for United, it is claimed that there is a back-back clause of £ 42 million in the deal.
Should Amorim immerse the star – which would match his preference 3-4-3 very nice – it would turn out to be a disastrous piece of company financially.
Scott McTominay
Eyebrows were raised when Erik ten Hag allowed to stop the midfielder and sign for Napoli – with colleague Scotsman Billy Gilmour.
McTominay, 28, began to show promising in a more advanced role that Sir Alex Ferguson was recommended for huge things when he was younger.
United, United succeeded in his first years and only managed to rake £ 25 million for the midfielder, who has since been called Napoli's 'Elixir' and 'Blue Label Scotch' after a phenomenal start to life in Italy.
Mctominay scored six times in 22 games for the Giants van Naples and fans won with his work ethics and all-round game.
Perhaps somewhat tongue-in-cheek, the midfielder is called a Maradona rain by dizzying supporters.
Since he was five years old, the Scot Ace was on the books of the Old Trafford side and is still reborn outside Old Trafford.
Angel Gomes
After he was only six years old at the United Youth Ranks, United expected great things from Gomes.
The 5FT 6in midfielder, now 24, only played five times in the Premier League for United.
And in 2020 he was sold to Ligue 1 Giants Lille in a shock transfer.
Gomes has been played for Lille 132 times and has forced itself in a busy attitude of midfield in England, a series of impressive versions among interim boss Lee Carsley.
Now with four senior caps to his name, after playing every young Lions-age group from younger than 16 to younger than 21, the future looks very rosy for Gomes.
One more that slid through the net …
Anthony Elanga
After they joined United at the age of 11, fans could not wait to see the talented wing player in action for the Senior Side.
He played twice in the Premier League season 2020-21 before he took his way into the team.
However, he was limited to a bit speech and after two fairly impressive seasons he joined Nottingham Forest in a £ 15 million deal.
Elanga, now a 19-caps Sweden internationally between the age of only 22, was immediately a force for the new life of giants.
He played two Prem matches in 2023-24 and played this season in every league match with Forest Forest High in third place.
Elanga even took a hat trick from assists in the forest of Forest on the weekend of Brighton.
In fact, he has easily surpassed all United attackers since leaving Old Trafford …
Cristiano Ronaldo
A man who needs no introduction, Ronaldo joined for a second stint in a shock transfer in the summer of 2021.
The Red Devils defeated the city neighborhoods to the coup and hoped that he would take his sensational goal record of Real Madrid and Juventus with him.
However, after a strong start, Ronaldo quickly faded.
And, in an explosive interview with Piers Morgan, the 217-Cap Portugal legend focused on the then Bross Erik ten Hag brutally.
After only 16 months, Ronaldo led a Saudi revolution, in which he joined AL -Nassr in a shock agreement -where he found his feet again, scored 87 times in 95 games and even won the Arab Club Champions Cup in 2023.
Bonus round: Antony
It has only been one game … But Antony already looks a star at Real Betis.
In two and a half years at Old Trafford, the signature of £ 85.5 million became one of the most criticized transfers from the club ever.
In 62 Prem matches he only scored five times and rarely had a big effect on games.
After left last month to join Laliga Side Betis, Antony had an immediate impact, because his shot led to an easy tap-in for ex-Real Madrid star Isco only 14 minutes after his debut.
Fans on X quickly got into the Red Devils, with one and even said, “Maybe United is the problem.”
Given the amount of talent that the club leaves and suddenly looks like world protectors, you cannot blame supporters for thinking.
Comments