Manchester United striker Marcus Rashford has been issued a Theo Walcott warning after an indifferent start to the 2019/20 season.
Rashford has netted twice in the Premier League in four matches and assisted one goal but has played up top and out wide during the campaign thus far both for United and England.
It's this adaptability which has actually led to criticism from former Liverpool star Stan Collymore, who claims that Rashford could become the 'modern-day Theo Walcott'.
Walcott never nailed down exactly what he wanted to be after joining Arsenal from Southampton in 2006 and it led to the 30-year-old ultimately not fulfilling his potential at the Emirates before joining Everton.
The once England prodigy only managed to score more than ten goals in a league season for Arsenal on two occasions and whilst Rashford has much higher aims for himself, the comparison makes sense to Collymore, who says the latter must decide what type of player he wants to be after playing from the left in England's win over Bulgaria.
"If Marcus Rashford isn’t careful, sooner rather than later he is going to find himself cast as the modern-day Theo Walcott," Collymore told Mirror Football.
"Someone who isn’t seen as an out-and-out winger or straight-up No.9 but a Jack of all trades as a forward and master of none.
"That’s why now is the perfect time for him to decide whether that’s the way he wants to go. Or would he rather be a player who lives or dies as a No.9. If he’s happy to play anywhere if it means being an England regular then that’s his call.
"But if that is the case over the next five to 10 years then I worry about the negative impact such a decision could have on his club career because of the message it sends.
"Ole Gunnar Solskjaer could well be forgiven for thinking: ‘Well, if this lad doesn’t have the confidence to back himself as England’s main No.9 then why should I back him at arguably the biggest club in the world? I’ll go out and buy an off-the-peg goalscorer in that case, someone who knows exactly what they are and what they want to be’.
"There’s no way Rashford can toddle off with England every few months and play out wide and then go back to Old Trafford and play like Ruud van Nistelrooy. So there’s a potential problem brewing for him."
