Marcus Rashford has thrust himself in line for an immediate recall to Manchester United's starting XI against Stoke on Saturday.
The England striker has responded spectacularly to being dropped for the first time this season in the 2-0 win against Leicester last month.
ALSO READ: Manchester United finally complete midfielder deal after two-month delay, dream move confirmed
He came off the bench to open the scoring against Craig Shakespeare’s side - and followed it up with the goal that put England on the verge of World Cup qualification in Monday’s 2-1 win against Slovakia.
Jose Mourinho dropped Rashford for Anthony Martial after the 19-year-old failed to score in United’s opening two games of the season.
But he took just three minutes to get off the mark when coming on against Leicester.
And despite being at fault for Slovakia’s opener at Wembley - losing the ball before Stanislav Lobotka struck - he recovered to score the winner for Gareth Southgate’s team.
Mourinho has been particularly impressed with Rashford’s attitude since taking charge at Old Trafford last year.
And Southgate also hailed his response to his difficult start on Monday.
“Having worked with him, he’s such a mature character,” said the England manager. “The start surprised me, but I felt the switch of wings was important as well.
“It allowed him a slightly different defensive role, and he adapted very well to that.
“His maturity is excellent. You look at him and he’s never in awe of the occasion, he doesn’t have any fear of anything.
“He’s still a work in progress, as we saw at the beginning of the game, but he’s still getting stronger and his impact in taking people on, in getting us up the pitch in counter-attacks, was not only huge for the team but the crowd as well.
“He had a huge impact on the game.
“It’s very early, we’ve got to keep things in perspective, but he is exciting.
ALSO READ: The two players Jose Mourinho has targeted to fill the number seven shirt at Manchester United FC
“He can have an impact in games but there’s a long way to go.”
United play Stoke in the evening kick off at the Britannia on Saturday - and Rashford has put pressure on Mourinho to put him straight back into the team.
It is a question of whether he replaces Martial - who has also been impressive in the opening weeks of the campaign - or is included as part of a three-man attack along with Romelu Lukaku.
The forward demonstrated his own character, with a frank assessment of his performance for his country.
“It was an important goal, we started a bit slow as a team - and me on a personal note.
“But we got back into the game together and got the win in the end which is all that matters.
“You have to get back to basics; just do what you’ve been taught and what you’ve been working on as a team and in the end that’s what got us back into the game.”
THINK IT IS IMPORTANT? SHARE WITH YOUR FRIENDS!
The England striker has responded spectacularly to being dropped for the first time this season in the 2-0 win against Leicester last month.
ALSO READ: Manchester United finally complete midfielder deal after two-month delay, dream move confirmed
He came off the bench to open the scoring against Craig Shakespeare’s side - and followed it up with the goal that put England on the verge of World Cup qualification in Monday’s 2-1 win against Slovakia.
Jose Mourinho dropped Rashford for Anthony Martial after the 19-year-old failed to score in United’s opening two games of the season.
But he took just three minutes to get off the mark when coming on against Leicester.
And despite being at fault for Slovakia’s opener at Wembley - losing the ball before Stanislav Lobotka struck - he recovered to score the winner for Gareth Southgate’s team.
Mourinho has been particularly impressed with Rashford’s attitude since taking charge at Old Trafford last year.
And Southgate also hailed his response to his difficult start on Monday.
“Having worked with him, he’s such a mature character,” said the England manager. “The start surprised me, but I felt the switch of wings was important as well.
“It allowed him a slightly different defensive role, and he adapted very well to that.
“His maturity is excellent. You look at him and he’s never in awe of the occasion, he doesn’t have any fear of anything.
“He’s still a work in progress, as we saw at the beginning of the game, but he’s still getting stronger and his impact in taking people on, in getting us up the pitch in counter-attacks, was not only huge for the team but the crowd as well.
“He had a huge impact on the game.
“It’s very early, we’ve got to keep things in perspective, but he is exciting.
ALSO READ: The two players Jose Mourinho has targeted to fill the number seven shirt at Manchester United FC
“He can have an impact in games but there’s a long way to go.”
United play Stoke in the evening kick off at the Britannia on Saturday - and Rashford has put pressure on Mourinho to put him straight back into the team.
It is a question of whether he replaces Martial - who has also been impressive in the opening weeks of the campaign - or is included as part of a three-man attack along with Romelu Lukaku.
The forward demonstrated his own character, with a frank assessment of his performance for his country.
“It was an important goal, we started a bit slow as a team - and me on a personal note.
“But we got back into the game together and got the win in the end which is all that matters.
“You have to get back to basics; just do what you’ve been taught and what you’ve been working on as a team and in the end that’s what got us back into the game.”
THINK IT IS IMPORTANT? SHARE WITH YOUR FRIENDS!
No comments:
Post a Comment