Marcus Rashford stated Gary Lineker in an interview with Match of the Day when the Manchester United academy graduate was 21 years old, "I want to be able to play in all [attacking] positions efficiently."
Lineker, who was a fantastic striker in his day, was interrogating young Rashford about his preferred position. When he asked Marcus about his ideal job, the young Englishman said, "I suppose No. 9 is certainly the dream." But, in this day and age, I think it's ideal to be as effective on the left and right [wings] as you are in No.9."
Marcus Rashford has accomplished a lot in the last three years. He has a total of 93 goals and 58 assists for Manchester United so far, as well as 12 goals and five assists for England. By the age of 24, I had accomplished all of this.
However, he's reached a snag in his game.
Rashford spent the first three months of this season on recovery after missing his penalty in the EURO 2020 final shootout against Italy and undergoing shoulder surgery later that summer.Rashford was in rehab throughout the first few months of this season. Many expected him to return with a bang, but despite scoring in his first two games back for the club, he has failed to do so.
Jadon Sancho has taken his place on the left flank, but his own form has left him struggling on the right and up front.
Marcus Rashford is correct in stating that to properly play at the highest level, players must be proficient in numerous areas of the game, as evidenced by Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo's supremacy over the last 15 years.
Marcus Rashford in the Premier League vs Norwich City at Old Trafford | (Image).
Some of the world's future top players, such as Kylian Mbappe, Phil Foden, and Jude Bellingham, have already demonstrated that their skill set extends much beyond being outstanding in one position.
Rashford has demonstrated that he understands this; now he must demonstrate that he has the ability to execute it.
Rashford, somewhat controversially, I believe, has a place in this squad under Erik ten Hag. Rashford, like many other players at this club, I believe, has benefited enormously from a lack of structure that focuses on player development.
Players like Rashford have been ran into the ground and not properly developed as a result of the club's inability to see more than a season ahead, with Rashford playing a big chunk of the last few years while carrying injuries being a prime illustration of this.
Although his apparent skill allowed him to perform well under Jose Mourinho and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, so much pressure was placed on the shoulders of players like Rashford and Anthony Martial that we are now seeing the unintended repercussions.
Martial has been forced to move on loan to Sevilla in order to rekindle his passion, and supporters are asking for Rashford to be transferred.
Marcus Rashford in action at the Wanda Metropolitano Stadium versus Atletico Madrid | (Image)
Perhaps my belief that Marcus Rashford deserves another chance to show himself as the player we all hoped he would be can be interpreted as me believing too much in the fairy-tale of academy graduates making their mark at the top for Manchester United.
Maybe my desire to see Rashford succeed again is based more on hope than faith, but what is football if not for the wonderful narratives of rising from obscurity to herodom?
Marcus Rashford has previously demonstrated to all of us that he has the ability to develop into a quality footballer for this club And he must do so once more.
If the team fails to recruit a striker in the upcoming 2022 summer transfer window, it has been reported that Rashford might start this coming pre-season as a striker under Erik ten Hag; however, only time will tell.
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