Ex-Manchester United striker Louis Saha insists that Marcus Rashford can “become a “top 10 player in the world” if he can regain his top level.

Speaking to Paddy Power, Saha says the fact that he is a United academy graduate makes it doubly hard for him to rediscover his form and confidence:

“There’s an expectation that because he’s the local boy, he has to connect with the fans but it’s when things aren’t going his way that he needs that connection. It’s the type of thing that Gary Neville, Phil Neville, John O’Shea or Wes Brown were all able to do whilst maintaining the quality. It’s a big booster for your confidence and if you don’t have that, it’s really hard. It’s like a boomerang, it’ll come straight back into your face.”

“Rashford has delivered that because playing at Old Trafford, the fans are sometimes very demanding, and he has to understand the balance. It’s not about transfers and the big clubs coming in for him, those will be regular rumours. He needs to recover his form and become a top-10 player in the world because that’s his level if he gets that consistency.”

Rashford clearly doesn’t have the confidence of his manager

As well as being questioned by supporters, it does appear that Erik ten Hag is not pleased with how the England international has been performing either.

After his woeful display against Newcastle at the start of the month, Rashford was dropped, having to be satisfied with substitute appearances against Chelsea and Bournemouth.

The United star must do his talking on the pitch

After scoring the penalty in the 3-0 win over Everton, which was handed to him by captain Bruno Fernandes, it was hoped that it would boost Rashford’s confidence.

However, as already mentioned, the 26-year-old has continued to struggle since then. He is not young anymore and there are no excuses for his lack of consistency. Rashford needs to step up and show that he is as talented as Saha claims.