Marcus Rashford made an awkward social media error when tweeting his tribute to David de Gea after the goalkeeper’s exit from Manchester United was confirmed.
On Saturday, the Spanish shotstopper confirmed his departure from the Red Devils after 12 years of service at Old Trafford, leading to a slew of comments from his former teammates in red, including Bruno Fernandes. However, Rashford’s initial post on Instagram showed a rookie error, which was quickly edited away.
Rashford posted a picture of himself alongside De Gea, alongside the words: ‘Caption ideas: You were here from my breakthrough, good luck with your next step brother.’ The first two words of that post were removed – but not before eagled-eyed fans spotted the mistake and took screenshots of the initial message.
Rashford is not the only player to get help managing social media accounts, although the use of PR personnel is usually better hidden.
Mail Sport previously reported on ten of the wildest gaffes made by players and clubs on social media – including Man United’s accidental Instagram Live featuring a microwave meal, and Everton’s Twitter person forgetting to sign into a personal account.
Sunderland’s Victor Anichebe also got into trouble for a simple copy-and-paste job gone wrong in October 2016, when he wrote: ‘Can you tweet something like… Unbelievable support yesterday and great effort by the lads! Hard result to take! But we go again!’
Gary Neville was among those calling for players to run their own social media accounts, after Kylian Mbappe was called out using Phil Foden’s account.
De Gea made 545 appearances for the Red Devils, keeping 190 clean sheets. The Spaniard lifted eight trophies during his time at Old Trafford – including the Premier League, FA Cup and Europa League, as well as winning the club’s Player of the Year award more than anyone else.
In a less questionable social media post, de Gea wrote: ‘I would like to express my unwavering gratitude and appreciation for the love from the last 12 years. We’ve achieved a lot since my dear Sir Alex Ferguson brought me to this club.
‘I took incredible pride everytime I pulled on this shirt, to lead the team, to represent this institution, the biggest club in the world was an honour only bestowed upon a few lucky footballers.
‘It’s been an unforgettable and successful period since I came here. I didn’t think from leaving Madrid as a young boy we would achieve what we did together. Now, it’s the right time to undertake a new challenge, to push myself again in new surroundings. Manchester will always be in my heart, Manchester has shaped me and will never leave me.’
Man United fan Liam Morgan argues that the club’s treatment of de Gea was poor, and showed a lack of respect to a player who had 12 years of experience between the sticks for the team, keeping a number of important clean sheets.
Manchester United are now seeking a new top goalkeeper. Erik ten Hag is keen to land his former Ajax stopper Andre Onana in a £43million deal from Inter Milan.
Share or comment on this article: Marcus Rashford makes awkward social media gaffe in Instagram post paying tribute to David de Gea.
