'DRINKING ALL DAY!' Downing tequila, falling into bed fully clothed then calling in sick to Man Utd… inside Marcus Rashford’s 12-hour bender

Rashford was pictured this morning arriving at training ahead of showdown talks with United bosses

Posted Tuesday, January 30, 2024 by Thesun.co.uk

MARCUS Rashford went on a 12-hour tequila bender before passing out at 3am, then called in sick hours later.

The Manchester United striker, 26, was axed for last Sunday’s FA Cup tie at Newport County after missing training following two days of boozing in Belfast.

Marcus Rashford went on a 12-hour tequila bender before passing out at 3am, the ace in Northern Ireland before his binge Credit: Twitter

'DRINKING ALL DAY!' Downing tequila, falling into bed fully clothed then calling in sick to Man Utd… inside Marcus Rashford’s 12-hour bender
Marcus Rashford posed for picture with a restaurant worker on Thursday at 4:22pm

'DRINKING ALL DAY!' Downing tequila, falling into bed fully clothed then calling in sick to Man Utd… inside Marcus Rashford’s 12-hour bender
Rashford went for drinks at Lavery’s after arriving in Belfast on Wednesday evening

A waitress who joined the Manchester United ace on his booze bender told last night how he was “on a mission to get drunk”.

She said the sloshed striker downed tequila shots and cocktails before collapsing on a hotel bed fully clothed just before 3am.

Rashford had spent two days partying on a visit to Belfast to see a pal, and got a 7am private jet back to Manchester on Friday.

But he then rang in sick for training and was later fined £650,000 — two weeks’ wages — and dropped from the FA Cup tie at Newport County last Sunday.

He was pictured yesterday morning arriving at training ahead of showdown talks with United bosses.

Belfast waitress Sarah Adair, 30, told last night how she had served the footballer lunch before he invited her to party with him.

She claimed they then had a “weird” night out which ended with her having to put him to bed after he drunkenly dropped huge wads of cash on the floor.

Sarah said: “I’m not surprised he missed training the next day given how late he got to bed and how much he’d had to drink. He must’ve known he wasn’t going to be in any fit state to play football.”

The mum of one was working on Thursday afternoon when a two-man security team came in and asked for a discreet table for a “high-profile” VIP party.

At first Sarah thought it could be a famous actor such as James Nesbitt or Jamie Dornan because the city is a hotbed for filming.

When Rashford walked in, she did not recognise him and only realised he was a footballer when her United-mad manager told her.

She said: “He was with two men and two women. One was clearly a friend and the other girl was French and very beautiful.

“She seemed to be with Marcus because of how they interacted. She was touching his knee and he was touching her arm, but you could tell from the conversation they didn’t know each other that well. It was like he’d just met her.”

Earlier Rashford had visited Larne FC after his footballer pal Ro-Shaun Williams signed for the Northern Irish club.

As Sarah served the group, Rashford also told how he had visited the Dirty Onion bar and Lavery’s pub the night before after flying into the city.

He ordered sea bass then asked her where was good to go out, adding: “You should come out with us and show us around.”

Meanwhile, Sarah’s manager politely asked Rashford’s minders if he could have a picture with him, but they refused as he was on a “business trip”. They also declined Sarah’s request to sign an autograph for her uncle.

Sarah said Rashford did not touch his food and was more interested in what tequila was on offer as he and his pals downed shots and drank cocktails.

He eventually relented on his picture ban and posed for a snap, as long as Sarah’s manager allowed her to leave early so she could hook up with them later.

Sarah said: “I thought he was joking. My boss agreed.”

She went on: “I’ve never been out with a Premier League footballer before so I thought, ‘Why not?’. Little did I know how weird it would be.”

Before leaving, Rashford asked Sarah if she knew of any nightclubs which would stay open later than the usual 3am closing time if he paid them enough cash.

She said: “That made it clear to me that he had already made his mind up that he wasn’t going to training on Friday. He had no plans to go home that night.”

Sarah finished her shift early at 5pm and went home before returning to the city centre at around 7pm.

She messaged Rashford’s minder as arranged but was left sitting in a bar on her own for nearly three hours before a Mercedes van pulled up at 9.40pm, and a security guard collected her.

She was asked to hand over her phone and not reveal who she was with or where she was going, although she was allowed to tell her mum.

The taxi took Sarah to the Villa Italia restaurant where Rashford was with his entourage and two other local women who had also been invited out.

Sarah said Rashford had booked out the top floor and brought his own Bluetooth speaker so he could play his favourite rap music.

He was dressed all in white with a diamond-encrusted watch on each wrist along with six or seven silver diamond chains and two diamond rings. He also had two identical iPhones on the table.

She said Rashford had also brought his own bottle of tequila. Sarah recalled: “I pulled up a chair and sat next to him and we all chatted.

“Marcus was confident but also seemed a bit shy. It’s as though he doesn’t really know who he is. He gives out the vibe he thinks, ‘I’m a footballer, I’ve got loads of money and can do whatever I want’. His friends treated him like he was a god.”

Sarah said Rashford ordered bruschetta but did not touch it as he does not like tomatoes with seeds in.

She said the star, who was only eating bread, told her: “I’ve been drinking all day.”

Sarah added: “They were still drinking tequila and passing around a bottle of Patron and he also ordered a round of limoncello. He was clearly on a mission to get drunk.”

She said one of Rashford’s friends reminded him he had training in the morning, but the player said he wanted to go out.

When one of the girls mentioned Thompson’s Garage nightclub as a place to visit, Rashford asked if they thought the DJ would let him play his own music.

Once dinner was over, the group split into girls and boys and they travelled in separate cars to Thompson’s, where clubbers captured the moment Rashford arrived.

The group then headed to a private area called The Attic and ordered yet more drinks. Rashford and the French girl are later said to have argued after she accused him of kissing another woman.

'DRINKING ALL DAY!' Downing tequila, falling into bed fully clothed then calling in sick to Man Utd… inside Marcus Rashford’s 12-hour bender
Sarah Adair told how she had served the footballer lunch before he invited her to party with him Credit: Pacemaker

Sarah told The Sun: “She said to me, ‘I’m so angry because he thinks he can do what he wants’.”

Last night a source close to Rashford insisted the striker left the club at 1.15am.

But Sarah says the group partied until shortly after 2am when Rashford’s pals and security decided the footballer was too drunk and needed to go to bed.

As they all left, another clubber filmed Rashford leaving, with a minder heard saying to them: “You’re gonna get him in trouble.”

The group then headed back to the five-star Fitzwilliam Hotel where Rashford was staying in the £1,500-a-night residence suite.

Sarah went up with others but his French companion could be heard shouting and trying to get in. Sarah claimed Rashford then gathered the woman’s belongings and dumped them outside, with security shepherding her away.

She said: “I said to Marcus to go out and speak to her and he just said, ‘No, I don’t care’.

“He was so drunk at this point that he picked up his own bag and dropped it and all this cash fell out. It was all £20 notes and big wads of it. I reckon there was between £8,000 and £10,000 cash.

“Then he falls back into the wall and I have to kind of scoop him up and on to the bed. He was fully dressed and I reckon he just passed out like that. He didn’t even get under the covers.”

One of Rashford’s pals told Sarah that she could sleep in another room, which she did, waking at 9.30am. She then messaged his minder and asked what time she needed to go.

He told her that Rashford and his team had gone at 5am, and asked her if she had left anything in his room as they had not done “a sweep”.

Sarah said last night that she was not surprised the footballer has since got into trouble, adding: “He was clearly on a mission to have a big night.

“It’s not like it wasn’t planned from the start. I don’t know how he didn’t realise he would be caught out.

“Everyone was taking pictures of him during the night out.” The source close to Rashford claimed the star returned to the hotel at 1.15am, did not drink cocktails and had less than £1,000 in cash.

Yesterday Rashford and his agent brother Dwaine met with manager Erik ten Hag and United’s director of football John Murtough for showdown talks.

A source added: “Marcus accepts his standards have fallen well short of what is expected.”

Last night the club said: “Marcus has taken responsibility for his actions. This has been dealt with as an internal disciplinary matter, which is now closed.”