RASHFORD HAPPY TO MARC TIME
Striker says he’s a better player just watching Zlatan and Rooney fro m th e b en ch
MARCUS RASHFORD reckons he has taken his game to a new level this season – despite having to take a back seat at Manchester United.
England forward Rashford is set for a rare United start in tonight’s Europa League last-16 first-leg tie against FC Rostov.
The 19-year-old has had to be patient this season, starting mainly from the bench, with 26-goal Zlatan Ibrahimovic leading United’s attack.
But Rashford said the influence of Ibrahimovic and skipper Wayne Rooney has helped develop him as a player.
“My all-round game has improved so much over the last year,” said Rashford.
“I’m doing things that I knew I could always do but wasn’t doing when I was younger. Being able to do it on the pitch and show it to people is a good feeling to have.
“The people closest to me understand what I mean, when I say I used to think a lot of things but not be able to do them on the pitch when I was younger.
“I’m able to do them now and the manager has helped me a lot with that.”
Rashford made his stunning breakthrough in the Europa League a year ago, scoring twice on his debut against FC Midtjylland at Old Trafford.
He bagged another two goals on his Premier League debut, won an FA Cup winner’s medal, and scored on his full England debut against Australia.
He was also called up for the Three Lions’ Euro 2016 squad, although this season has been more of a learning curve, with fewer starts.
Rashford has only seven goals this term but said that had been offset by what he has learned from working alongside Ibrahimovic and Rooney.
“It’s invaluable what you can learn from them, even off the pitch,” said Rashford.
“From training sometimes you learn an awful lot more than you can learn in games, so a lot of the time I’m focusing on what they’re doing in training.”
Tonight’s opponents Rostov proved their worth by beating Ajax in the Champions League qualifying round last August and Bayern Munich in the group stage.
And given that they have only one defeat in their last 30 home matches, Rashford knows United cannot take them lightly on a difficult surface on what is sure to be a tough night.
Rashford added: “It’s another experience that we can get under our belts. If we can get the win, hopefully we can progress in the tournament.”