Marcus Rashford can do whatever he pleases – but there’s one issue with his New York trip

If you believed Marcus Rashford shouldn’t have been at the New York Knicks-Brooklyn Nets game last weekend, you were correct.

If you felt Manhattan’s Madison Square Garden was an unsuitable location for Rashford to be, you were correct. If you felt he should have been doing something other than being the focus of a hundred flash guns and modelling a really attractive Louis Vuitton coat, you were not wrong. But here’s the deal.

The only reason he shouldn’t have been in New York was that he SHOULD have been with the England group, preparing to face Ireland at Wembley. He is just 27 years old, in his physical peak, and a world-class player, but he is unable to make an England squad with NINE cry-offs.

Even if there were nine more, Rashford would not have received a call. Rashford may do anything he wants once he is not required for international duty and his club has given him time off, as long as it does not violate any of his employers’ laws.

And flying visits to New York City are wonderful, especially if you fly in front of the bus. If Rashford’s appearance at The Garden actually irritated you, you should look at yourself rather than him.

However, his presence at The Garden should serve as a reminder to the player, his new club manager, and Thomas Tuchel that there is a magnificent talent that is – relatively speaking – going to waste. Why was Rashford free to enjoy the glitter of a basketball game in the Big Apple?

Because, since the start of last season, he has 12 goals in 60 games for his team. Because, since the beginning of last season, he has scored eight goals in 43 Premier League appearances, two of which came from the penalty spot.

Because he has nine assists in 60 games since the beginning of last season. Because he has only scored once in the Premier League this season. Because he has only provided one Premier League assist since the season began.

Regardless of the visual evidence of so many indifferent presentations, they are terrible figures, even in their mediocrity. Rashford is a terrific player. Or he was an exceptional player.

And if his participation in an NBA game generates more attention than his performance in a football game, he and his team have a problem. No one should be concerned with what Rashford does with his time off, even if it involves a 7,000-mile round journey to watch sports.

However, when the next international break rolls along, England supporters would like to see him in England white rather than Louis Vuitton white. It would be preferable to watch him on a pitch rather than on the sidelines of a basketball court.