Rashford Urges Manchester United to Follow Liverpool and Manchester City’s Stability Model

Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford has called on his parent club to embrace long-term stability by sticking with a manager and a clear plan—just as Liverpool and Manchester City have done in recent years.

Speaking on the Rest is Football podcast, the England international argued that United’s so-called “transition” has never truly begun because of constant managerial changes and shifting strategies.

“People say that we’ve been in a transition for years, but to be in a transition, you have to start it. The actual transition hasn’t started yet. When Liverpool went through this, they got [Jürgen] Klopp and stuck with him. They didn’t win in the beginning. People only remember his final few years when he was competing with City and winning the biggest trophies,” Rashford explained.

The 26-year-old stressed that United must be realistic about their situation and commit to a long-term plan rather than constantly changing direction.

“We’ve had that many different managers, ideas and strategies in order to win that you end up in no man’s land,” he said.

Since making his senior debut for United in 2016, Rashford has played under Louis van Gaal, Jose Mourinho, Ole Gunnar Solskjær, Erik ten Hag, and Ruben Amorim, alongside interim spells by Ralf Rangnick, Ruud van Nistelrooy, and Michael Carrick. In the same period, Liverpool have had only two managers—Klopp and Arne Slot—while Manchester City have remained with Pep Guardiola since 2016.

Opinion:
Rashford’s comments cut to the heart of Manchester United’s struggles since Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement—an absence of consistency. Stability in management is not just about loyalty; it’s about giving a philosophy time to take root, weather early setbacks, and build a squad that reflects the manager’s vision.

Liverpool’s patience with Klopp and City’s long-term trust in Guardiola show that sustained success often follows years of groundwork. By contrast, United’s frequent changes have created a cycle of short-term fixes and half-finished projects, leaving them, as Rashford puts it, “in no man’s land.”

If the Red Devils truly want to return to their glory days, they may need to endure the growing pains of a real transition—one with a clear start, a clear leader, and most importantly, the patience to see it through.