Louis Saha: Marcus Rashford’s potential reminds me of Nani’s at Man United

Former Manchester United striker Louis Saha has told us that Marcus Rashford’s struggles with consistency at Old Trafford in recent seasons remind him of the way his ex-Red Devils team-mate Nani used to perform for the club. 

Saha believes in some ways Nani was more gifted than Cristiano Ronaldo when the duo played for United, but that inconsistency let the former down.

And the ex-United attacker says he sees the same when he looks at Rashford’s performances of late, adding that the England international needs to switch on the same approach Ronaldo has when on the pitch. Bit by bit CR7 became more clinical and less reliant on his skill.

“Rashford is an amazing player. What I like about him is he’s very focused, he’s not in the media for the wrong reasons,” Saha told us. “But sometimes it’s about his emotions. He does have emotion within himself, but he sometimes doesn’t express it and so people get frustrated. He works hard…but he reminds me a little bit of Nani.

“Nani was even more talented than Cristiano Ronaldo in some ways – in terms of his physical qualities, he could run all day, physically he was so strong, skilful as well. But he was not deadly. He was not as deadly as Cristiano, who was very focused, knew how to score and when to score… And sometimes that’s how I feel Marcus is, he’s in between.

“He has this potential where he can give a lot to the team, defend for the team, but he could be more selfish. Nani was an immense talent for me, I loved the guy, but people were frustrated because he couldn’t find the right moment to make the difference, he’d miss an opportunity that he shouldn’t miss, and sometimes that’s what I see in Marcus.

“But Marcus started out at United very, very young and was asked to be the superstar and the one to save the club, so the education and the way he has had to protect himself since then has been difficult for him.”

Saha admits it has been a tough watch following his old club this season and believes United need to be back challenging for titles, not just for a place in the top four.

“Manchester United are frustrating. It’s all about frustration at moment,” Saha said. “They have so much potential, they have the players, so there’s no excuses. They need some big leaders to take this adventure forward. There are massive challenges, don’t get me wrong, but this is Manchester United. A club that has everything at their disposal.

“It’s not about getting back into the top four, they can’t settle for that. It’s not normal for the club. They need to be thinking about being at the top of the table, winning the Champions League. It’s not an unrealistic expectation and they should have the correct reaction to aim for that. I want to see the required emotion from them needed to be at the very top. That’s my expectation and I don’t see it at the moment. I see it in some games, but this is not normal for the club, you have to be consistent at their level.”

Saha also spoke about another of his former teams, Everton. But while he believes the appointment of Frank Lampard is a good one, he would have liked to see former Toffee Wayne Rooney given the job.

“I would have seen Rooney as the more logical choice as he knows the club,” Saha said. “Lampard has experience at Chelsea, but Rooney would have a good understanding of who to talk to at the club, what he could receive, with a stronger support in many ways. It was a choice by Everton, they made it, and that’s it. As someone who respects the player, I’ve seen the job Rooney is doing and what he’s dedicated at Derby. I hope he gets the job he wants later as he’s shown great class.”

Saha added on Lampard: “It’s an exciting move because he’s a name, probably more as a player than a manager, with all the respect I have for what he’s done at Derby and maybe Chelsea. But he’s a very young manager, in a unique position to be managing such a big club, after maybe two-and-a-half-years’ experience. Chelsea and Everton have similarities but this is a big challenge, a really big challenge.

“I’m sure he’ll receive at his disposal all the tools needed. It’s such a big club with a big infrastructure. He’ll find it easy to adapt, as the infrastructure is not much different than at Chelsea. I can’t wait to see how he sets out his team moving forwards, how he sets up his staff and his communication. It’s very important he brings (Dele) Alli and (Donny) van de Beek into the mix straight away. There are a lot of things to watch out for over the next few weeks.”

Saha believes Lampard can guide Everton to a top-half finish this season, but he needs to hit the ground running in the Premier League if they are to avoid a relegation scrap.

“Finishing in the top half of the table is a possibility,” he said. “It’s a dangerous relegation race at the moment, they could be dragged down very quickly. You lose your first two games and you put yourself under pressure, so Everton have to be careful. Lampard has to hit the ground running straight away. Having all this excitement doesn’t matter if you get relegated. The main target is to stay up. But they have the potential for a decent run that could make them comfortable in the top half of the table.”

Saha started his career in England with a loan move to Newcastle from Metz, and he says he will never forget his time in the Premier League.

“I’ve got amazing memories from my time in England,” he said. “I fell in love with the Premier League when I went to Newcastle, I fell in love with the culture as well. I couldn’t understand the Geordie accent! But I loved it anyway. Everton were also like a family with open arms. They welcomed me, protected me, respected me. It was amazing. It was the perfect club for me to join at the time as the end of my career at Manchester United had been difficult.”

While Saha was just at the start of his career when he joined Newcastle, he says he learnt a lot from the likes of Alan Shearer, as well as from missing out on a place in the Magpies team for the 1999 FA Cup final.

“Alan Shearer was a legend of England, the Newcastle captain, an amazing player and he acted like a big brother to me,” Saha said. “He helped me understand the philosophy, to be relaxed on the pitch, to understand the connection with the fans and the tradition of the club. I also remember Dietmar Hamann, Gary Speed… They were so important, they all made me feel very comfortable at the club and in the Premier League.”

Saha added: “Missing the FA Cup final for Newcastle was tough. I was young, but I understood. I understood why Duncan Ferguson replaced me, so I took it on the chin. But I was eager to have my own story. I wanted to come back. I wanted to be in FA Cup finals, I wanted to be in Champions League finals. It was all foundations for my growth. I’ve never had any regrets over that. Frustration maybe, but no regrets.”

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