Gary Neville called out Casemiro and Marcus Rashford, one proved him wrong and one gave up on Man Utd

When Ruben Amorim took charge of Manchester United, both Casemiro and Marcus Rashford were under fire from Gary Neville.

The reason for this criticism around two of Manchester United’s highest paid players at the time was the manner in which the pair spent their international break in advance of Ruben Amorim’s first game.

At the time neither were in the international set-up for their nations, instead taking a short holiday, and last November, this was a hot topic for Gary Neville.

What Gary Neville said about Casemiro and Marcus Rashford

After both Casemiro and Marcus Rashford went on trips to the USA in advance of the opening game of Amorim’s reign, Neville ranted on Sky Sports about the situation.

“The professionalism, looking after your body and making sure you’re best prepared for the next training session is critical to every decision you make during the season

“He [Marcus Rashford] has got a mental break, he’s got to get away and has got to rest with friends – then you talk about the choice of venue, how far do you fly, what’s the time difference, is that going to give a jet lag issue, is that going to give a stiffness issue from being on a flight for 12 hours?

“This is on Casemiro more than Rashford, but if I’m [over] 30 years old and I’m looking after my body, and he’s won five Champions Leagues and is an unbelievable player, but if he was away with Brazil for 10 days, we would say he would struggle this weekend because he’s been away.

“They [Casemiro and Marcus Rashford] have chosen that international break. If you are talking about the minor details in being as professional as you can be and as prepared as you can be for a training session on a Monday night, that isn’t the best choice of venue.”

 

Marcus Rashford gave up on Manchester United

After this situation, Marcus Rashford only played six more times for Manchester United before Amorim dropped him for the Manchester derby and subsequently the academy graduate spoke out.

Rashford explained that he wanted to leave United and this signalled the end of his time as a Red Devils star.

He spent the remainder of last season on loan before joining Barcelona this season on another loan, showing no intention of returning to the fold at Old Trafford, giving up on the club.

Rashford could have gone down as a club legend, had he not left in the manner he did which for many, ruined his legacy entirely and there has been no way back.

But it didn’t have to be this way, as Casemiro has proved.

Casemiro took the redemption route at Manchester United

We cannot say Neville was wrong about Casemiro, because the Brazilian’s performances in the opening half of the 2024/25 campaign was far from good enough.

Amorim has even admitted Casemiro was bottom of the pecking order at United, before he found a new level in his game, worked hard and rolled back the years to make himself key for the club.

Casemiro has even earned new contract discussions at United, albeit this will be on reduced wages, however it is still testament to how big the improvements have been from the Brazilian.

Despite his age, Casemiro is still key for Brazil, wearing the captain’s armband for Carlo Ancelotti as he continues to impress against all the odds.

Casemiro could end up being remembered more fondly than Rashford at United, which would previously be a crazy thought, but now it seems increasingly likely