The striker of the Red Devils had difficulty playing together with Cristiano Ronaldo, and since the Portuguese left for Saudi Arabia, the home player has not stopped scoring. In the spicy meeting against Barcelona in the Europa League (Sport4, 19:45), the Englishman will come to prove that he is the best player in the kingdom
In retrospect, Gareth Southgate’s decision to severely limit Marcus Rashford’s appearances in the World Cup feels bad Even more so than real time. Nobody knows, of course, what would have happened if the Manchester United star had received more minutes in Qatar, but we do know the contribution he was able to make. The only time he started in the team, he bombed a wonderful double in 0:3 against Wales, even earlierHe managed to score in celebration against Iran, so maybe it would have been better for the England coach to send him to the quarter-final campaign a little earlier than the 85th minute. In practice, the Manchester United scorer entered the match against France only after Harry Kane missed his second penalty, and the Lions lost. On the other hand, the Red Devils themselves should be pleased that their star has returned fresh, refreshed and very hungry from the World Cup. Somehow, sitting on the bench did not harm his self-confidence at all, but actually strengthened it. From the moment he landed on home soil again, Rashford is unstoppable, and feels that everything is going his way. How much luck is on his side? The referees even approved Bruno’s equaliserFernandez in the derby against Manchester City when Rashford was in a clear gap during – and immediately after that the striker himself completed the turnaround to bring a critical 1:2 victory in all respects. Ten Haah: “Barcelona’s numbers are impressive.” Show: “Big test” Zlatan against Ibrahimovic: the father cooperated with his son in training PSG pressure: Messi is considering leaving, Galtier’s status is damaged, Neymar to Chelsea?
No matter how you look at it , Rashford is the outstanding player in England in 2023. Arling Holland’s scoring rate has decreased to some extent, and the power of the 25-year-old United star is only increasing. Since returning from the World Cup, Rashford has started 13 games for his team in all competitions, finding the back of the net in 11of them – and in addition he also scored when he came on as a substitute against Wolves. Before the flight to Qatar, Rashford had 8 goals this season, and now he already stands at 21 – one short of his personal season best set in 2019/20. Tonight, in the intriguing game against Barcelona in the Europa League, he will have the opportunity to equalize, or even break it. Barca has a special place in Rashford’s life. Yesterday it was published in ‘El Mundo Deportivo’ how deep the talks between the parties were in January 2019 when the Catalans looked into the possibility of signing the Englishman. The striker’s original contract at Old Trafford was due to expire in the summer of 2020, and Barcelona offered to wait to bring him in as a free agent, or buy him at a reduced priceimmediate The club saw him as a possible future successor to Luis Suarez, but Rashford ended up getting cold feet – probably rightfully so. Barcelona has a certain tradition of British players with Gary Lineker, Steve Archibald and Mark Hughes in the 1980s, but that was a long time ago, and their level of success was not promising anyway. It is not easy for an Englishman to adapt to the style in Spain, and Rashford preferred to stay at the club that raised him. In the end, Barca’s offer served as an incentive for Manchester United to greatly upgrade and extend his contract, to remove such threats – and Rashford should be grateful to the Blaugrana for that.
When he steps onto the Camp Nou pitch for the first time tonight, Rashford will not be able to ignorefrom the thoughts of a possible life in Catalonia, but he certainly does not regret giving up. Barca know very well how huge the value of a home player is, and Rashford is the ultimate home player for Manchester United. He survived all the personal and group crises with her, but almost always felt welcome because he belonged to the club from the beginning. The most difficult period was last season, when Cristiano Ronaldo completely took over the position of central striker, and caused a fundamental change in the method of play which did not suit Rashford to say the least. He had the patience to understand that this was a temporary period that would pass, and the nightmare ended already at the beginning of this season when his new mother Eric ten HaRemoved the Portuguese from the squad and signaled to the rest of the players that they were expected to get their freedom of action back. With Cristiano’s departure during the World Cup following the scandalous interview with Piers Morgan, everything was already completely free – professionally and mentally. This is the main reason why Rashford breathed a sigh of relief upon his return from Qatar. He is back in a Ronaldo-less team with a coach who trusts him a lot.
For Ten Haag, Rashford is a key figure because of his versatility. He prefers the central striker role, but is very mobile, moves a lot to the wings, clears areas and is very effective in exerting pressure without the ball. He’s fast and powerful, so he’s great for quick passing attacks, but knows how to work withBall even on small areas and finds spaces in the area in any situation. When he plays with Anthony Martial, the wing becomes very flexible, and they switch places frequently. In recent weeks, with the Dutchman Vaught and Horst entering the lineup as a slightly more classic central striker, Rashford plays well on the right and left, and knows that the Dutchman will allow him sufficient living space. The mutual understanding with Bruno Fernandez, which was good from the first moment, is only getting better with time, and the team feels that it is developing momentum. It’s still very far from perfect, but the potential is there – Rashford is a very integral part of that potential. As Ten Haag testifies, the most important thing today iskeep your feet on the ground. “We must not be satisfied with what we have achieved, because satisfaction turns into laziness. We must continue to invest every day. When Rashford does that, he brings energy and belief to the games, so he will continue to score,” says the boss. Barcelona are well aware of the danger, and there is a player in their defense who has experienced conflicts with Rashford in previous seasons. “I like his style, because he plays directly, and is in great form at the moment,” said Denmark’s Andreas Christensen, ex-Chelsea, who arrived at Camp Nou in the summer.
In general, the Europa League brings Rashford good memories. This is the factory where he made his sensational debut, when Louis van HalGave him his first chance against Mityolan exactly 7 years ago. It is also the last team title he won with Manchester United 0:2, at the end of a 0:2 victory in the final over Peter Bos’s Ajax – just before the beginning of the Ten Haag era in Amsterdam. Now, he is no longer a teenager, and at 25 is no longer considered a promise. He needs to take the reins and become one of the leaders of the team in the present – and this season it is happening before our eyes. Rashford also excels in the big games, with a goal against Liverpool, a brace against Arsenal, and also that much talked about performance in the derby against Manchester City. The draw that invited Barcelona to the Red Devils will cause a very high motivation on his part, and in his current form this could be a celebrationReal at Camp Nou – exactly the kind of game you really shouldn’t miss.