The past year has been sensational for Manchester United’s newest young player Marcus Rashford as he debuted and scored for Manchester United in Europa League, Premier League, England senior team and recently, the England U-21 team where he ended up scoring a hattrick. The youngster has had a meteoric rise after playing his first game for the club under Louis Van Gaal back in February this year.
Marcus Rashford grew up watching Real Madrid player Cristiano Ronaldo and admitted that the former Manchester United superstar was a big inspiration in his life. Speaking to Inside United, Rashford said, "When Cristiano Ronaldo came to United, he was the one who everyone looked up to,"
"The thing that impressed me the most was the fact he was only young when he came into the side and he wanted to be the best player in the side. He worked hard every single day, you saw him in the gym every single day and the results came on the pitch. He openly wanted to be the best player in the world.”
The 18-year-old was impressed by Ronaldo's single-mindedness during his stay at Old Trafford and admitted that it is a useful trait to have for any player who is looking to achieve great things in life.
Also read: Cristiano Ronaldo on the brink of historic goalscoring landmark in the Champions League
"You have to have an approach like that, all the best players in the world do," he added. "It's not arrogance or anything like that, it's the mindset you need to achieve things."
The young England international was instrumental in the win against Hull city at the KC Stadium last month as a stubborn Hull defence were giving no way through for United. And with just 19 minutes remaining, in stepped Rashford injecting incisiveness into the attack. Rashford’s moment came in the dying seconds of extra time as he made his way through the six-yard box to slot in Wayne Rooney’s pass to win the game for Manchester United.
Rashford has two tough challenges coming his way this season. One is to maintain his progress and continue to put in effort in whatever opportunities he gets this season. The other is to convince new manager Jose Mourinho that young players can be just as effective as players with experience.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic has also tipped Marcus Rashford to 'take over everything' one day and pleaded the fans to let the young player develop in his own time. Despite the limited time Ibrahimovic spent on the pitch with the youngster, the big man has been quite impressed by what he has seen from Rashford so far.
With impressive debuts and plenty of praise from big football stars, Marcus Rashford definitely has plenty to live up to.
