Roy Keane has publicly challenged Marcus Rashford’s contribution to the culture at his former club while acknowledging the forward’s talent as he returns to the England setup. Rashford had suggested recently: “I feel like I have been in an inconsistent environment for a very long time, so it is even more difficult to be consistent.” That comment was widely interpreted as a critique of long-standing dysfunction at Manchester United.

Keane addressed those remarks on ITV, saying: “Towards the end of his time at United, there was obviously issues,” and added: “He was part of the problem with the environment, especially [as] one of the most experienced players at United.

“He should have been setting the standards and showing new people at he club what it’s like to be a United player. But that’s been well documented. What we have to look at is he’s got this chance now with England and he deserved it.”

The article notes Rashford spent nine years in the senior side at his boyhood club and played for six different managers during that period, each attempting different styles with squads assembled by earlier regimes. Keane conceded Rashford’s quality, saying: “No doubt about his talent, he’s obviously fantastic.” He went on to pinpoint areas for improvement: “But the bit that would have frustrated fans is his body language, not running back or not pressing properly. That’s the things he needs to tidy up and if he does there’s no reason he can’t become a world class player.”

Rashford, the 27-year-old, earned a recall to the national team under Thomas Tuchel in March after a year out of international selection. He played the second half of last week’s friendly win over Wales and made an impact during 19 minutes against Latvia with a forward-minded showing. Tuchel specifically outlined that he selected Rashford “for the work-rate against the ball” which he has shown for Barcelona and Aston Villa since being frozen out at Manchester United by Ruben Amorim.

Norway manager Ståle Solbakken confirmed Manchester City striker Erling Haaland was released from the national squad at the weekend to allow him a period of rest.

Solbakken dismissed Haaland ahead of Tuesday’s friendly against New Zealand, but clarified the decision was not driven by fitness concerns. The Norway boss said he wanted to protect players who had been carrying heavy midweek workloads in recent weeks. “Everyone who has played a lot in the Champions League was told to go home, except Patrick Berg who refused to go home,” he revealed. “Everyone who has played regularly with midweek matches, or had some minor problems.”

That management of minutes extends to Haaland, who will return to Manchester City and be available for domestic action. He will have time to recover before City’s next fixture, a home match with Everton scheduled for Saturday.

New Zealand manager Darren Bazeley welcomed the absence but acknowledged Haaland’s influence. “I don’t know if it’s disappointing not to play against him, but it will be easier. He is a great goalscorer, when he is not on the pitch they are not as good.”

Haaland, 25, has had a prolific start to the season. He has scored 12 goals in nine appearances and was held without a goal in only one match, a 2–0 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur in late August. Nine of those strikes have come in the Premier League, giving him an early lead in the Golden Boot race.

Behind him in scoring are Bournemouth’s Antoine Semenyo with six goals, and Burnley’s Jaidon Anthony and Brentford’s Igor Thiago on four. The national team’s decision to rest players who have been heavily involved in midweek fixtures reflects a wider trend of managing workload for top-level attackers and protecting form across club and country commitments.

Erling Haaland completed a hat-trick on Saturday night to reach 50 international goals for Norway in just his 46th appearance. The milestone moves him ahead of Pelé on the all-time list and into fifth place among the fastest scorers in male international football.

By reaching the half-century mark in fewer than 50 matches, Haaland became just the sixth male footballer to do so and the first player in 53 years to reach 50 goals in under 50 appearances. Pelé needed 49 games to reach the same total; Haaland needed 46.

The scale of the achievement is underscored by comparison with other leading figures at the same stage of their international careers. After 46 appearances, Cristiano Ronaldo had 17 goals for Portugal, while Lionel Messi had 13 for Argentina.

There were chances for an even larger total on the night. He saw a first-half penalty saved before the referee ordered a retake, which the City striker once again failed to convert.

Reactions from inside the Norway camp reflected the sense of rarity around the feat. “There are no words to describe him,” Norway assistant Kent Bergersen proclaimed. “There are no words that can do him justice. He scores goals in every possible way.” Teammate Alexander Sørloth added: “You think you’ve seen everything, but he just gets better and better. There’s nothing he can’t do. His statistics are unbelievable.” “I discovered that he’s from the same planet as the rest of us,” manager Ståle Solbakken laughed.

The list of players who reached 50 international goals in the fewest matches now reads: Poul Nielsen (36), Gerd Müller (41), Ferenc Puskás (41), Sándor Kocsis (42), Erling Haaland (46), Pelé (49). Haaland’s rapid accumulation of goals has altered the narrative of international scoring records and placed him among the most efficient finishers in the history of the men’s game.