UNITED Marcus has ability to silence his critics
MARCUS Rashford is having to deal with some criticism for the first time in his young United career. Not an avalanche. But enough to add some pressure to his young shoulders – shoulders which have sagged just a little as he has toiled through a lean patch.
The 20-year-old has featured in his favoured centre-forward role for at least part of the last three United games, failing to score and missing good chances after replacing Romelu Lukaku against Southampton and in the FA Cup win over Derby.
Headed opportunities, in particular, have gone begging.
And the Wythenshawe lad’s confidence seems to have waned with them. His tidy finish in the derby in early December was his last goal.
There are mitigating circumstances. Rashford has played in a variety of positions, rotating with Anthony Martial on the left, deputising for Lukaku centrally and occasionally popping up on the right. Consistency has been hard to find.
And for a player still developing – he’s barely out of his teens – he has played a lot of football. So much so he made more appearances (61) than any other player in Europe’s top five leagues in 2017.
The reasons for the latter issue are two-fold.
Manager Jose Mourinho values his pace, creativity and hard work – and he has scored nine goals this season, which is hardly a disaster.
And Mourinho’s decision to bank on Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s successful return and his failure to land a winger last summer means ‘The Kid’ being pressed into action more often than he might have been.
He clearly has some work to do. Heading appears to be a weakness in an otherwise well-rounded game and he must be more clinical in taking the chances he and his teammates create. But it isn’t time to panic. And Mourinho isn’t, saying: “I’m not worried with Marcus because the good moments will arrive.”
Just as they did for Rashford’s pal Jesse Lingard, whose confidence has soared along with his goals tally after he put in the effort and grabbed his chance.
Rashford isn’t in a Luke Shaw situation, where Mourinho’s bad cop persona eventually sparked the right response from the flagging full-back.
Neither is he wandering anonymously and ineffectively through games in the manner which has seen Henrikh Mkhitaryan’s United career almost grind to a halt.
He proved as a teenager, with his stunning introduction to senior football, that he is man enough to live up to the high expectations placed upon him.
And his humble, hardworking approach to the game that catapulted him from the streets of Northern Moor to worldwide acclaim, means he won’t sulk through his troubles. Mourinho’s faith in and fondness of him are clear to see. A goal or two can – along with the manager’s backing, more hard graft and a little patience – spark his own Lingard moment. Anthony Jepson