Rooney's Challenge to Rashford: Rediscovering the Hunger

Wayne Rooney believes only one player can catch him at the top of Manchester United’s goalscoring charts – Marcus Rashford – but says the forward must rediscover his hunger if he is to threaten the record.

Rooney, who hit 253 goals for United, used his new podcast, Stick to United, to lay down a blunt challenge to the 28-year-old, whose Old Trafford career is heading into an unexpected second act.

Rooney’s challenge to Rashford

Rashford returned to United this summer after Barcelona opted against turning last season’s loan into a permanent deal. He has been involved in Michael Carrick’s pre-season plans, but Rooney made it clear that talent alone will not be enough.

"It’s just such a strange one with Marcus because I think we know he’s got the ability. I think he’s shown that," Rooney said. "For me, has he got the hunger, does he want to play for Manchester United?"

Rooney knows the terrain. He referenced his own turbulent spell in 2010, when he asked to leave the club, as a warning and a roadmap.

"Now, if he wants to play for Manchester United, I think the first thing he has to do – I’ve been there in 2010 when I asked to leave the football club – he has to build a relationship with the fans," Rooney explained. "And the easiest way to do that is to work hard and body language."

That, in Rooney’s eyes, is where Rashford has slipped.

"I think Marcus’ body language isn’t great, and so it might be something he has to work on. He might have to work with someone to make his body language look better.

"I think his work rate has to improve, but if he wants to be at the football club, he just needs to knuckle down. You do it, and he’s a young lad. He’s from Manchester. He’s the one player who can go and get my goalscoring record."

A career at a crossroads

Rashford sits 15th on United’s all-time scoring list with 138 goals. The gap to Rooney is vast, but so is the time left in his career if he can reset.

His United journey stalled badly last season. He last played for the club in December 2024 after falling out of favour under then-manager Ruben Amorim, prompting back-to-back loan spells at Aston Villa and Barcelona. For Rooney, that cannot be Rashford’s story.

"I don’t want to see Marcus Rashford doing well at Aston Villa or doing well at Barcelona," he said. "I want to see him doing well at Manchester United and scoring goals for Manchester United."

The path back, Rooney argued, is brutally simple: graft and attitude.

"That means he has to just get his head down, work his socks off, and then be more positive," Rooney insisted. "But it’s on him."

Trust, surroundings and the road back

Rooney also urged Rashford to look closely at the people in his inner circle as he attempts to relaunch his United career.

"If he’s back playing for Manchester United, I think he has to have a real close look at who’s round him," Rooney said. "Only he can say who the people are around him who he really trusts. Because there’s not many people you trust really. It’d be a small amount of people, keep them close to him, go into training, work hard, get himself right. If he does that, he’ll be fine."

The message could hardly be clearer. The record is there, the stage is there, and the club is still there. Now the question hangs over Rashford alone: does he want it badly enough to chase down Rooney’s mark in a United shirt?