Gary Neville has warned Marcus Rashford that the perception of his personality could change if he continues to be pictured in nightclubs at moments that could be timed better.
Just a few hours after defeat to Manchester City in October, Rashford was pictured in nightclub Chinawhite and he was spotted at another venue in Belfast last week.
United say they were informed the imagery of Rashford in a nightclub was from Wednesday night and the players had a day off on Thursday. Rashford was subsequently absent from training on Friday due to illness and absent from the squad to play Newport County.
Erik ten Hag described the issue as an ‘internal matter’ and the player will be available for selection against Wolves after the club confirmed the matter had been closed.
However, the story has made the back page of most newspapers and Neville was asked for his thoughts on the situation during his appearance on BBC Breakfast.
“Well, that happened quite a bit [players going out] when I was at the club where there were many of us, 20 odd, in a dressing room, young men,” Neville said.
“For me, going out for a drink or a night out is something every football player should and will do, so I’ve got absolutely no problem with that. They need to enjoy themselves.
“But it’s all about choices and timing and I said this after the Manchester City game at home. We got beat at home against City and he went out that night to Chinawhite, I think it was his birthday.
“Then they had a game against Newcastle in the Carabao Cup after that and I just said ‘Look, choose your time’. United had just had a winter break and a few weeks off, so that was a better moment for him to go out.
“Your timing has to be right. He [Sir Alex Ferguson] would have given him a dressing down, but he would have said similar things, make sure you do it at the right moments, nobody ever says to a football player you can’t go out.
“But when you have a game three days later and Marcus knows himself, he’s an experienced player now and he’s done this a few times. I’ve always seen him as being really responsible, professional and someone who works hard every day. He’s going through a dip in form right now, but this has happened once or twice and it can become your personality if you’re not careful.
“If you do it too many times, people wonder what is going on in your life, so he just needs to relax, calm down, choose when to go out and get back to playing football at the levels he can.”
United have not confirmed whether Rashford has been fined or disciplined as part of the disciplinary process.
