Marcus Rashford was a familiar face on the Premier League scene, having made his debut just three day after his debut as a senior player for Manchester United. James Weir’s story is largely unknown. Louis van Gaal chose to give a second chance for Rashford after he had appeared in a Europa League match against FC Midtjylland only 72 hours before. Weir struggled with anxiety. Van Gaal chose Weir as his replacement despite having other options available. Weir was brought in to replace Ander Herrera who had been booked and scored. This marked his first and only appearance for the senior team. Although he led the Carrington Under-21s team to league victory, he was never given another opportunity at elite-level, as he missed Hull’s entire season before they were demoted. Weir recalls the United campaign in which he played first-team football. “I was on the bench for about 10 games,” he told the Guardian.READ MORE: Barcelona enter Marcus Rashford transfer talks as Man Utd braced for £12m blowREAD MORE: Man Utd news: Marcus Rashford causes a stir as Wayne Rooney reveals Sir Alex Ferguson chat”It was a bit of a whirlwind – it feels like a lifetime ago. My debut was an out‐of-body experience but they were the best moments of my career. It was amazing to be in the squad, and get exposed to such a large club. I would not change a single minute.”In an earlier interview with Planet FootballHe expanded on the brief appearance. “Usually you start warming-up after 25 minutes or do a small run to grab the manager’s interest, but Van Gaal was different,” he explained.”You had wait until he said to warm up. That meant that he would then send you on. After 75 or 80 mins he told to warm up, and then someone shouted from the touchline for me to return to the tech area. “Bloody Hell, I’m going to come here!” I thought.”My parents were present, but it was all so fast. I remember standing at the end of the game with Timothy Fosu Mensah, Paddy McNair and trying to absorb everything.”James Weir, Devonte, and Devonte, of Manchester United, raise the Barclays Premier League trophy for the Under-21s in 2016.” (Image: Alex Livesey/Getty Images). He said: “I can tell my children and grandchildren that I played for Manchester United in the Premier League – although I may not mention the one-minute bit!”He vividly described to the Manchester Evening News the intensity of that moment. “At the point you’re thinking “don’t mess it up”, it was 3-2. “I was thinking “run around and do whatever you can” and then the game was over.”I came on to replace Herrera, and he said ‘fight’. It was his usual behavior. It was a very typical thing for him. As for the coaches, i think they were more concerned with ‘don’t mess up.'”Ander is a nice guy. There was no holding him back.”He was also present for the bizarre atmosphere that surrounded Louis van Gaal and his antics. He recalled, “It had been a crazy day. Van Gaal did the impression of Alexis Sanchez in the touchline. [when he fell to the ground]. I was warming up, and I thought that there was some sort of fight taking place. I only noticed it afterward.”Louis van Gaal trying to show Mike Dean a copy of Alexis Sanchez diving against Arsenal (Image:
MANCHESTER UNITED VIA GETTY
He revealed that he had a special bond with Rashford and was able to witness his amazing rise: “For Marcus, to score two goals was really surreal. This made the day all the more special.I was older than him but we lived in the same place for a few years. We played FIFA together, and went out to eat. I wasn’t able to play as much with him because I was older.”When he reached the reserves, we played a few games together but he went straight to the first-team. He missed the period as we did not have any strikers. After that, he took his chance and the history is what it is. We knew he would reach great heights.Weir’s Academy side was full of talented players, including Pereira, Will Keane Tyler Blackett and Dean Henderson. He also shared the turf with established stars including Wayne Rooney, Michael Carrick, Scott McTominay, Jesse Lingard and Antonio Valencia during his time at Old Trafford.Nevertheless, Weir has now decided to retire from football and embark on a fresh chapter as a travel agent. In an interview with The Guardian, Weir revealed that: “I could still play football to a certain extent, but I couldn’t do it every day at the professional level.” It wasn’t worth it to live away. I wanted to get out of the relationship early.Join our new MAN UTD WhatsApp Community and receive daily Manchester United content by Mirror Football. Our community members also receive special offers, promotional materials, and advertisements from us and our partner. If you do not enjoy our community you can always leave. Sky Sports discounted Premier League & EFL packageThis post contains affiliate links. We will receive a percentage of any sales generated from this article. Learn more£49£35SkyGet the deal hereSky has slashed the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle ahead of the 2025/26 season, saving members £336 and offering more than 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more.Sky will show at least 215 live Premier League games next season, an increase of up to 100 more.
2025-11-02 18:33:29
I made my Premier League debut with Marcus Rashford at Man Utd – then I retired at 28
