HE IS HUMAN AFTER ALL!
Lockdown hero Rashford scores one . . . but misses two big chances
ONLY Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo were younger than Marcus Rashford when they reached 50 Premier League goals for Manchester United. Yet the England striker should look closely at two golden oldies if he is to develop into one of Old Trafford’s greatest forwards.
At 23 years and 58 days, Rashford’s future looks highly promising. He is skilful, quick and creative. He has the temperament to handle being a key man for club and country, on and off the field.
As Rooney and Ronaldo proved on numerous occasions, though, the best players are defined by their ability to deliver in the decisive moments.
That is what Edinson Cavani and Jamie Vardy did here, while Rashford, who has 13 goals in all competitions this season, stumbled too often when his big chances came.
Cavani was only a late substitute at the King Power Stadium but the 33-year- old made a far greater impact in his 15 minutes than Anthony Martial had in the previous 75.
Showing all his experience, the Uruguayan drifted away from Jonny Evans in the 79th minute before collecting possession and releasing Bruno Fernandes, who put United 2-1 up.
That should have been enough to secure a record-equalling 11th consecutive league win on the road for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s team, until Vardy contributed to Leicester’s second goal.
As substitute Ayoze Perez prepared to cross from the right, Vardy took a slight step to his right, moving away from Harry Maguire and creating just enough space for a shot.
The goal was lucky — Vardy’s strike was heading wide before it clipped substitute Axel Tuanzebe and flew past David de Gea — but would not have happened without streetwise movement from Leicester’s top scorer.
He and Cavani are the same age and took very different paths to reach this stage, yet they need only the slightest opportunity to turn a game. Had Rashford been as clinical, United would have secured another valuable victory in the title race. Less than two minutes had passed when Rashford, unmarked at the far post, headed Fernandes’s cross over the bar from six yards.
He did put United in front with a solid finish, only to be denied by Kasper Schmeichel when clean through early in the second half. At that stage, the score was 1-1 after Harvey Barnes had equalised.
‘Marcus has been brilliant,’ said Solskjaer. ‘We are very proud of him as a human being as well as a player, and his stats are very impressive. He is always a threat and he will create chances for others. He could have had a couple more goals but that is football.’
Solskjaer hopes Rashford will recover from a shoulder problem in time to face Wolves at Old Trafford tomorrow, while there are also fitness concerns over defender Victor Lindelof, who was replaced by Tuanzebe midway
through the second half. The point allowed Leicester to stay above United as they travel to Crystal Palace today. Both this season and last, Leicester were in second place when they woke up on St Stephen’s Day. While they were thrashed 4-0 by Liverpool last year, Brendan Rodgers is impressed by his team’ s progress.
Youri Tielemans maintained his excellent form with another superb display, while Barnes and James Justin also shone.
‘It is satisfying, no matter what club you are at, to help players to improve and develop. That is what I enjoy. James Justin’s development and the authority he is showing at this level is growing game by game.
‘Harvey is producing the numbers and he will be up there with others at this level now in terms of goals and assists,’ he said.
‘My job is different to how it works at Manchester United. We don’t have the financial resources of other clubs, but we still want to be able to compete. That is a big challenge for us.’
LEICESTER (4-2-3-1): Schmeichel 7; Justin 7, Fofana 6.5, Evans 7, Castagne 7; Ndidi 7, TIELEMANS 8; Albrighton 6 (Perez 81min), Maddison 6, Barnes 7.5; Vardy 7. Subs not used: Ward, Amartey, Thomas, Fuchs, Choudhury, Mendy, Praet, Iheanacho. Scorers: Barnes 31, Tuanzebe 85 (og). Booked: Maddison, Ndidi. Manager: Brendan Rodgers 7 MANCHESTER UNITED (4-2-3-1): De Gea 6; Lindelof 6 (Tuanzebe 66, 6), Bailly 6.5, Maguire 7, Shaw 6.5; McTominay 7, Fred 7.5; James 5 (Pogba 54, 6), Fernandes 7.5, Rashford 6.5; Martial 5 (Cavani 75, 7).
Subs not used: Henderson, Telles, Matic, Lingard, Van de Beek, Greenwood. Scorers: Rashford 23, Fernandes 79. Booked: Fernandes. Manager: Ole Gunnar Solskjaer 7. Referee: Mike Dean 6.5.