UNITED Marcus could benefit from taking a break

IT was the moment he surely visualised while lying on his hotel bed just 12 hours’ previously.

Through on goal, with just the goalkeeper to beat, Marcus Rashford had the chance to silence those boo boys who had not given him a moment’s peace at the Liberty Stadium.

No doubt, the Wythenshawe lad even had a fitting celebration in mind when Federico Fernandez’s lax header inadvertently played him in on goal.

Rashford showed great reactions to read the situation, and burst clear.

Goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski’s bold decision not to rush out gave Rashford an extra second to pick his spot with his right foot as the Pole took a deep breath.

But the 6ft 3in stopper did not even have to move as he gratefully claimed Rashford’s tame dink – much to the delight of Swansea’s vociferous fans.

Within seconds, social media was awash with unfavourable comparisons with fellow Fletcher Moss graduate Danny Welbeck, who was never the most natural one-on-one finisher.

It had all been very cosy pre-match – Paul Clement and Jose Mourinho spent 10 minutes chatting at the centre circle as the players warmed-up – but that all changed come kick-off. And Rashford was the target.

The 19-year-old infamously won a controversial penalty when Swansea visited Old Trafford in May but, surely, he did not expect the deafening chorus of boos that greeted his first touch.

It just did not happen for Rashford at Swansea – even after Eric Bailly’s goal before half-time.

The Ivorian’s sucker punch silenced the home fans somewhat as the game drifted before Rashford was hooked with 15 minutes to go. Rashford’s replacement, Anthony Martial, got on the scoresheet, again, and the Frenchman had a hand in United’s other two goals.

Mourinho named his first unchanged team since December at the Liberty Stadium, but it would be a surprise if he resisted recalling Martial for Saturday’s game against Leicester.

Rashford could well be the one to drop out, but that is not necessarily a bad thing.

Having looked jaded last spring, the teenager was reinvigorated by a rest for the trip to Sunderland and made a goalscoring impact from the bench.

Rashford is one of the few millennials at the club Mourinho can squeeze – even when he is going through a painful goal drought.

He will soon silence those boo boys.