Will Marcus Rashford’s two-day bender in Belfast mark a turning point for the Manchester United forward?

What happened with Marcus Rashford in the past week?

The Manchester United footballer was photographed and filmed partying in Belfast last week before the club’s FA Cup game against Newport County. The problem was he’d called in sick for training. Oops.

Belfast? What was he doing there?

Rashford was visiting his friend Ro-Shaun Williams, another former Manchester United youth academy player, who now plays for NIFL Premiership club Larne. Earlier that day, he visited Larne’s ground and met coach Gerry Flynn.

What sort of boozing did he allegedly do?

According to reports, Rashford went out to Lavery’s bar on Wednesday, a popular Belfast haunt, where he was spotted ordering shots of tequila. United players had a day off on Thursday and the club were initially informed that he was only out on Wednesday and got sick on Thursday, but more footage emerged of Rashford at Thompson’s Garage nightclub on Thursday night, allegedly passed out while clothed, well into the early hours, and just hours before he was due for training on Friday morning.

How did Manchester United respond to the news?

A club statement said Rashford had “taken responsibility” for his actions and manager Erik Ten Hag said it was an “internal matter” and considers the case to be “closed”. Rashford’s weekly wage is a hefty £325,000, so he is reported to have been fined two weeks wages for his actions, a cool £650,000, on top of the thousands he spent on food and drink, and £1,500 a night on the residence suite in the Fitzwilliam Hotel in Belfast. A waitress claims Rashford also carried around a bag of £20 notes that totalled many thousands. An expensive few nights, to say the least.

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How’s his team doing anyway? Maybe he was just letting off some steam.

Well, there have probably been better times for this sort of session. United is having a nightmare season so far, out of the Champions League in the group stage and mid-table in the Premier League. Rashford’s form had also dropped off considerably. After his best season last season in a United shirt, when he scored 30 goals in all competitions, Rashford has only scored four before his Belfast sesh this season.

How have the Manchester United players reacted?

His partying did not go down too well with his team-mates, as according to the Times of London, staff have described him as “distant” recently and responding poorly to instructions. Perhaps knowing he was in big trouble, Rashford offered to play against Newport after his boozy weekend but Ten Hag told him to train in Manchester instead. In November the forward was spotted in a nightclub hours after the club lost to Manchester City, Ten Hag called it “unacceptable”.

This all comes as one of Rashford’s allies in the team, Jadon Sancho, left to go on loan to Dortmund. Sancho was frozen out for refusing to apologise for calling out Ten Hag on social media after the manager said he had been dropped for poor performances in training. Unlike Sancho, Rashford at least apologised.

So Rashford wll be punished by being left out of the team for a while?

No, not at all. Perhaps wisely judging that United could not afford to lose another key player, Ten Hag started the English international against Wolves in the Premier League on Thursday. Rashford then scored a cracking goal within five minutes, as Manchester United won a thrilling game 4-3. It was arguably his best performance of the season.

Rashford is sure to be on the thinnest of ice with Ten Hag for his erratic behaviour. But all’s well that ends well? Maybe a two-day bender in Belfast is what we all need to blow the cobwebs away.