MU has tasted victory again and the hero is none other than the familiar name, Marcus Rashford. But that’s not necessarily good news for coach Erik ten Hag.
In the 25th round match with Brentford this morning, Man United need to win 3 points to end the recent short-term crisis. Despite competing against the opponent, the Red Devils struggled to win at least 1-0 , thanks to the only goal of striker Marcus Rashford in the 27th minute.
This victory helps Man United break the streak of 3 consecutive games without winning and not scoring in the Premier League. However, coach Erik ten Hag’s teachers and students still continue to rank in 4th place. They have 53 points after 28 matches – equal to Newcastle, but behind because of inferior goal difference (+5 compared to +26).
For Rashford personally, he continued to have a memorable performance. According to Opta statistics, Rashford has scored 19 goals at Old Trafford this season. This is also the best home record of a MU player, after Wayne Rooney – who scored 19 goals in the 2011/12 season.
Since the 2022 World Cup, Rashford has scored 11 goals in the English Premier League, more than any other player in this tournament. This achievement is better than the total of 3 clubs, including Crystal Palace (9 goals), Bournemouth (9 goals) and Southampton (10 goals) in the same period.
In terms of the top 5 European leagues, only Victor Osimhen – the player wearing the Napoli shirt, is in better form than the English striker, with 12 goals.
Speaking after the match, Rashford said: “MU is at the decisive stage of the season so every game is important. We are happy to win and hopefully can return to the way it was a few weeks ago.”
When asked about the possibility of MU being able to finish in the Top 4, the English striker shared: “That is the goal that I and my teammates aim for. We want to earn as many points as possible. MU will try hard. power to win every game”.
Obviously, Rashford’s spirit has been revived, after his lackluster performance in MU’s 0-2 loss to Newcastle over the weekend. In that match, Rashford had just recovered from an injury and was not in good physical condition. By the match against Brentford, the striker was completely prolific and immediately scored.
This is not the first time Rashford has become a hero to save the Red Devils. According to statistics, the 25-year-old star has scored 10 decisive goals to bring the Red Devils victory in the Premier League this season, the most with a MU player since Rooney in the 2009/10 season.
If last season, Man United relied heavily on Ronaldo’s ability to score and could only pass the ball and hope for this player to shine, this season, Rashford is proving himself worthy of the replacement.
Worth mentioning is that Rashford’s achievement is even more impressive than CR7. Last season, the Portuguese superstar had only 24 goals in 38 games in all competitions. Meanwhile, Rashford has 28 goals in 46 games in the 2022/23 season. In Europe’s top five leagues, only Man City’s Erling Haaland (42 goals) and PSG’s Kylian Mbappe (31 goals) have a better record.
The fact that Rashford scored continuously is a good sign for Man United. He has completely replaced Ronaldo to shoulder the Reds’ attack.
However, this can also bring negative points. Because Man United is too dependent on Rashford’s ability to score, every time he runs out of power or is “locked” by the opponent, MU will immediately fall into a deadlock.
Remember, the second highest scorer for MU this season is Bruno Fernandes with only 10 goals. Next are Antony (7 goals), Fred (6 goals), Anthony Martial (6 goals), Casemiro (5 goals) and Jadon Sancho (5 goals).
Coach Ten Hag may have to find a way to make MU’s attack less dependent on Rashford. Otherwise, it will be difficult for them to achieve their goals this season such as entering the top 4 of the Premier League or winning the remaining 2 cup tournaments.
During the summer transfer window, the Red Devils brought in Wout Weghorst on loan, but the Dutch striker has only 2 goals in all competitions. He probably just plays the role of “bait” and wall, rather than sharing the burden of scoring for MU.
Ten Hag will have to wait until next summer to add more quality to the attack and bring in a true striker to team up with Rashford. And from now until the end of the season, he will have to hope Rashford is always healthy and remains as inspired as he is now.
