Fans raise glass to hero Rashford
AFTER his escapades in Belfast, it felt like Marcus Rashford was in the last chance saloon. Restored to the Manchester United team by Erik ten Hag, the England forward certainly owed his manager a drink for such a show of faith. But how did Rashford perform on a crucial night for his career?
WHAT HE DID WELL
What better hangover cure than an early goal? Teed up by Rasmus Hojlund on the edge of the box, Rashford sent a sweet right-foot shot into the top corner inside five minutes before running to the United fans. There were no extravagant celebrations from the 26-year-old, who stared expressionless at the jubilant supporters, drinking in the adulation. It was as though he had heard the words of former United captain Rio Ferdinand pre-match. ‘He seems to have been punished behind the scenes but I want to see a performance now and he’s put that pressure on himself,’ he said. ‘There needs to be a reaction and a good reaction.’ Having created the first, Rashford then played a crucial role in the second by feeding the overlapping Luke Shaw. Shaw’s cross was turned in by Hojlund to make it 2-0.
WHAT HE MUST IMPROVE
When United have the ball, Rashford is one of their most dangerous attackers. When they do not, he can sometimes do a reasonable impression of a lamp post. It was lucky for United that Wolves’ attacking play was rushed as on at least two occasions, wing-back Nelson Semedo found himself in excellent positions, only to waste his chance to cross or shoot. Stronger teams would have punished such hiccups. He is careless in possession at times, too. With United under pressure, Lisandro Martinez won the ball from Jean-Ricner Bellegarde and found Rashford. Instead of holding off Max Kilman and finding a team-mate, Rashford tried a party trick, only for his silly backheel to go out of play. How did the fans react? At other grounds — Anfield or the Etihad spring to mind — Rashford would have been barracked for 90 minutes by the home supporters, regardless of the scoreline. He was lucky, then, to visit a place where local rivalries are more important than a visiting player who is fond of a night out. That meant Rashford was able to slip into Molineux almost incognito. Nobody berated him when he emerged for the warm-up and when the match started, the home fans targeted West Bromwich Albion rather than Rashford. United fans made light of Rashford’s antics, chanting ‘Rashford’s on the p***’. And with three points finally in the bag, they were able to raise a glass to their homegrown hero at full-time.