Marcus Rashford shows his class with private response to Gareth Southgate leaving him out of England Euro 2024 squad

MARCUS RASHFORD showed his class in his private response to being sacked by England, according to Gareth Southgate.

SunSport learned that the Manchester United striker would not be part of the Three Lions’ provisional squad hours before the official announcement.

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England manager Southgate confirmed the news by naming his 33-man England squad.

The 26-year-old has represented his country in the last four major tournaments and scored 17 goals in 60 caps.

At club level, last season he scored 30 goals in all competitions for United but has managed to score just eight times this season ahead of the FA Cup final with Man City.

And his dramatic drop in form, as well as controversial off-field issues such as his infamous trip to Belfast, led to him being left out of the tournament squad.

However, Southgate opened up about the star’s response after the Three Lions boss personally called Rashford to inform him of his decision.

Explaining his omission, he said: “He will be extremely disappointed.

“He wants to play for England, he loves playing for England, and the opportunity to play in tournaments is the reason he plays international football.

“But again, he was very respectful. I told him: ‘You need to score some goals at the weekend now and put things right’.”

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Within 20 minutes of the news being publicly confirmed, Rashford issued a classy public statement where he wished his teammates and international manager a message of support.

He wrote: “Wishing Gareth and the boys all the best for the upcoming tournament.”

And Rashford wasn’t the only big name absent, as Jordan Henderson also missed out despite leaving Saudi Arabia in January for Ajax.

Southgate added: “You are really aware of the impact of Marcus and Hendo because they are two people who externally make people jump on them very quickly.

“And I think they know I’m there to support them. Although this was a difficult conversation, they were both very professional and very respectful.

“But of course I’m aware that it creates a little more drama in their lives, which I don’t want them to experience, but it’s a reality of the decision I made.”

Southgate’s squad will be reduced to just 26 players on June 8, two days before he flies to Germany.

Meanwhile, Rashford looks set to watch all the action from home – and he will have plenty of options when it comes to coverage.

The BBC announced its Euro 2024 line-up this morning, before ITV followed up with its own all-star expert cast.

BBC and ITV’s Euro 2024 line up in full

See how each channel will be aligned:

BBC presenters:

Gary Lineker, Alex Scott, Gabby Logan and Mark Chapman

ITV presenters:

Mark Pougatch and Laura Woods

BBC experts:

Alan Shearer, Micah Richards, Rio Ferdinand, Ellen White, Frank Lampard, Ashley Williams, Wayne Rooney, Joe Hart, Cesc Fabrges, Thomas Frank, Davod Moyes, Rachel Corsie and James McFadden

ITV experts:

Ian Wright, Roy Keane, Gary Neville, Karen Carney, Graeme Souness, Eni Aluko, Ange Postecoglou, Danny Rphl and Christina Unkel

BBC commentators:

Guy Mowbray, Robyn Cowen, Vicki Sparks, Steve Wilson, Steve Bower and Jonathan Pearce

ITV commentators:

Sam Matterface, Clive Tyldesley, Seb Hutchinson, Pien Meulensteen and Joe Speight

BBC co-commentators:

Danny Murphy, Martin Keown, Jermaine Jenas and James McFadden

ITV co-commentators:

Lee Dixon, Ally McCoist and Andros Townsend