Former Manchester United defender Paul Parker has named Casemiro, David de Gea and Lisandro Martinez instead of Marcus Rashford as his top contenders for the club’s ‘Player of the Season’ award.
Rashford, 25, has found a new lease of life under Red Devils boss Erik ten Hag in the ongoing 2022-23 campaign. He has helped his club in their top-four push in the Premier League, lift the EFL Cup and reach the FA Cup final.
A right-footed wide operator blessed with pace and directness, the 51-cap England international scored just five times in 32 games last season. However, he has been in world-class form for the Old Trafford outfit this time around. So far, Rashford has scored 28 goals and laid out 10 assists in 49 matches across all competitions for his club.
Speaking to MyBettingSites, Parker named his picks for the Manchester United ‘Player of the Season’ award. He said:
“For Manchester United’s player of the year, I can’t go with just one player. I have to go with three: Lisandro Martinez, Casemiro and David de Gea. But I know that De Gea won’t get it in the end.”
Explaining his reason for not including Rashford in his list, Parker continued:
“Some people will throw in Rashford because he scores goals but you need more than that to be the player of the year. If he was making assists, then we could maybe talk about it. Only maybe. All he has done this season is scoring goals, that’s really it.”
Highlighting Casemiro and Martinez’s impact at Manchester United this campaign, Parker added:
“Casemiro and Martinez have been amazing and it will be between the two of them, which is a very nice choice to have. They are both new players and you can only be impressed by how quickly they have established themselves as almost indispensable players, or key players at least, under Erik ten Hag.”
Paul Parker names Manchester United forward as flop of the season
When asked to name the Manchester United player who has disappointed the most this season, Paul Parker told MyBettingSites:
“Anthony Martial is the player that has disappointed me the most. He had a great opportunity but he hasn’t grabbed it. He has been impetuous and impetuous ain’t enough for Manchester United. Another miserable season and it’s incredible when you look at the length of the players’ contracts. He has been hiding behind it for too long.”
Martial, 27, has failed to impress Ten Hag due to a lack of form and a number of injuries this season. He has started just 13 matches so far, scoring seven goals and providing three assists in 1072 first-team minutes.
According to The Guardian, Martial is one of 15 first-team stars who could potentially be offloaded in the upcoming summer transfer window. The Red Devils are keen to cash in on the striker as his contract runs out in June of 2024.
