Rashford shows why Man Utd were right to release Ronaldo
Karan Tejwani
- 30 Nov 2022 07:45 GMT
- 3 min read
England confirmed their place at the last 16 of the World Cup as group winners following a comfortable 3-0 win over Wales, as Senegal await them as their next challenge.
A brace from Marcus Rashford and a goal from Phil Foden secured the result and progression with the Manchester United man scoring a very impressive set of goals.
His first was a free-kick that flew into the top corner to give England the lead and his second came not long after, beating his defender with a step-over before slotting the ball into the net.
READ: Rashford hails Ronaldo despite Man Utd divorce
The performance showed how important Rashford had become for club and country and how his confidence has risen over the last few months as a result of his form at Manchester United.
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If the World Cup was held in the summer time as it normally is, it’s likely that Rashford would not have been in the squad for England because of his poor form.
He was dropped from the England squad by Gareth Southgate after a series of poor performances for Manchester United and his inclusion for his national team seemed unlikely.
READ: Rashford England cameo shows why Ronaldo is finished at Man Utd
Last season, as Manchester United struggled under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Ralf Rangnick, Rashford’s form stuttered, as he scored just five times all campaign.
This year, following a full pre-season, an individual plan and clear tactical progression under Erik ten Hag, Rashford has become crucial to Manchester United’s plans.
Ten Hag is known to improve his attacking players, as evident by his work at Ajax, and he is doing so again here with Rashford, and that has benefitted the England national team at the World Cup.
Player of the match 🏴 pic.twitter.com/z8X8UwQoRW
— Marcus Rashford (@MarcusRashford) November 29, 2022
It’s also shown they are ready to move on from Cristiano Ronaldo with the England forward set to be the talisman for years to come, having already done well with that responsibility over the course of the season.
As of now, despite starting just once, Rashford is the World Cup’s joint-top goalscorer, netting thrice, and has proven he can be effective in his moments, as he has done for club and country this season.
