Manchester United star Marcus Rashford feels there is a sinister reason for the criticism he has faced this season from various pundits and journalists.
Rashford has produced just five goals across 32 appearances in all competitions this season under Erik ten Hag in what has been a poor campaign thus far.
The forward was fined two weeks’ wages worth £650,000 last month after he was caught partying in Northern Ireland, which saw him miss an FA Cup match.
Former United star Andy Cole told Rashford to ‘have a look at himself’ after the incident while Alan Shearer called out the England international for his body language during the 1-0 win over Nottingham Forest on Wednesday.
Wayne Rooney encouraged Rashford to work harder for the club this week following reports that he is barely on speaking terms with his boss Ten Hag.
But Rashford has passionately defended himself in a blog post for The Players’ Tribune and has argued that the criticism aimed at him is due to his desire to feed hungry children during the coronavirus pandemic.
Rashford successfully waged a high-profile campaign in 2020 to persuade the government to provide free meals to vulnerable youngsters and eventually forced former Prime Minister Boris Johnson into a U-turn.
Rashford also says there is a ‘tone’ to the criticism he has faced which ‘you don’t get with all footballers’.
‘I’m not trying to have a go at the media,’ Rashford wrote. ‘I understand the game, you know what I mean? They’re not really writing about me.
‘It’s like they’re writing about this character, ‘Marcus Rashford’ – it can’t just be about me as a 26-year-old lad on a night out, or a lad getting a parking ticket.
‘It’s got to be about how much my car costs, guessing my weekly salary, my jewellery or even my tattoos.
‘It’s got to be about my body language, and questioning my morals, and speculating about my family, and my football future.
‘There’s a tone to it that you don’t get with all footballers. Let’s just leave it at that.
‘I think some of it goes back to the pandemic. I was just trying to use my voice to make sure that kids weren’t going hungry, because I know exactly how it feels.
‘For some reason, that seemed to rub certain people the wrong way. It seems like they’ve been waiting for me to have a human moment so they can point the finger and say, ‘See? See who he really is?’ – listen, I’m not a perfect person.
‘When I make a mistake, I’ll be the first one to put my hand up and say that I need to do better.
‘But if you ever question my commitment to Man United, that’s when I have to speak up.
‘It’s like somebody questioning my entire identity, and everything I stand for as a man. I grew up here. I have played for this club since I was a boy.
‘My family turned down life-changing money when I was a kid so I could wear this badge.’
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