"Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo never took a season off" - Andy Cole urges struggling Manchester United star to refind form
Andy Cole has used Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo as examples for Marcus Rashford to follow when touching on the Manchester United star's inconsistency.
Rashford has come off the boil following a sensational 2022-23 campaign which saw him post 30 goals and 11 assists in 56 games across competitions. The English forward has managed just one goal and three assists in 16 matches so far this season.
Cole enjoyed seven prolific years at Manchester United, scoring 121 goals in 275 games. The Red Devils legend can't understand Rashford's nosedive this season. He alluded to the English star's inconsistency over the years (via GOAL):
"I don’t know. I really, really don’t know. His form was phenomenal last season, but if you look at his form from two years before that, it was similar to what it’s like now."
There were question marks over Rashford's future in the summer of 2022 following a disastrous campaign. He only managed five goals and two assists in 32 games across competitions.
Rashford bounced back from that disappointing spell with his best campaign to date but has again regressed. Cole argued that the likes of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo's form never dropped off:
"The freaks such as Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo never took a season off. Around 20 years at the highest level and they never took a season off. That’s what you’ve got to be like to play at that elite level. Only Marcus knows what’s going on in his head at the moment."
Cole urged the England international to go back to basics to reignite his form:
"His form over the last four or five years has been inconsistent... If I had one goal to my name in 16 appearances, then I’d go right back to basics on how I train, how I finish or whatever it may be. I’d do whatever it took to get me back into form."
Rashford signed a new five-year contract in July, extending his stay at Manchester United until 2028. Fans are growing impatient with his lack of consistency as the Red Devils' protagonist.
Manchester United's Marcus Rashford on the GOAT debate between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo
It's well-documented that Rashford's childhood idol was Cristiano Ronaldo. The Manchester United star grew up watching the Portugal icon wreak havoc for his boyhood club in the Premier League.
However, the 25-year-old admitted in 2018 that he viewed Lionel Messi as the greatest player in history. He said (via The Mirror):
"I'm a big fan of Ronaldo as well, but I think Messi is the greatest ever."
Rashford recalled playing against the eight-time Ballon d'Or winner in an interview in 2020. He said:
"The way [Messi] finds spaces, he’s unbelievable. When I played against him for the first time, that’s what I said to Jesse [Lingard, a teammate] at half time. He doesn’t move, but he’s everywhere, because he lets everybody else move."
Lionel Messi, 36, for many, cemented his legacy as the greatest player in history by winning the World Cup last year. He bagged seven goals and three assists in seven games as Argentina were crowned world champions.
However, Cristiano Ronaldo, 38, is his closest rival and he enjoyed two spells at Manchester United. Rashford had the opportunity to play alongside his hero from 2021-2022. The Portuguese great managed 145 goals and 64 assists in 346 games for the Red Devils over the course of two spells.