In his 12th exclusive column for CaughtOffside, super-agent Rob Segal lifts the lid on what’s really going on in British football.
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Man United won’t fall for Marcus Rashford’s PR tactics…
They would sell him to Arsenal. There was a time when Danny Welbeck was in a similar position and he ended up going to Arsenal.
It could be a PR stunt though, and if it is, United won’t fall for it. From a footballing perspective though, I am not even sure where he would fit in at Arsenal at the moment.
I think what Man United will do, knowing he has up to two years left on his contract, is monitor his situation closely but they won’t panic.
Gone are the days of clubs offering five or six-year deals when a player still has two left and that’s because clubs used to use that as a kind of insurance, whereby if another club came in and said ‘we want to sign him’, they could demand a fee that reflected the player’s bumper contract, but nowadays, clubs aren’t so keen to be left with players on massively long contracts.
If James Maddison goes to the World Cup, Mason Mount won’t…
If Gareth Southgate takes James Maddison to Qatar, then he won’t take Mason Mount.
MORE: “Rattled too many cages” – Pundit says ‘top-quality’ Man United star to blame for exit
I know FIFA have increased country’s maximum squad from 23 to 26, but I still believe Southgate will choose between the two instead of taking both. He’ll prioritise other positions, such as full-back and centre-back over the attacking midfield, number 10 role.
I really believe it’s one or the other, and with just 11 days left before he announces his squad, players basically have one more game to impress.
Cristiano Ronaldo’s legacy is being tainted…
This is not how Cristiano Ronaldo wanted to go out. Don’t get me wrong, he can still do a job at a very high level, but what is happening at the moment is not what he would have envisioned.
Maybe he has rolled his eyes and shrugged his shoulders just one too many times because he is running the risk of his legacy being tainted.
One thing I am sure of though is that he won’t renew with United and if he gets an offer in January to go and play for another club, the Red Devils will let him go.
I think in terms of where he could go next, it’ll all depend on how Portugal does in the winter but the speculation surrounding his future will ramp up once the World Cup starts. It’ll turn into a media circus and it’ll all be ‘what is Ronaldo going to do? Where is he going to go?’, and if that does happen, United will want to part ways sooner rather than later.