[Mockney]

The fact that the commentary team mentioned Rashford's 'mistake' probably 14/15 times is everything that is wrong with English football.

As someone who was there, this was the thing I found most bizarre coming out of the ground and checking the usual feeds/papers/highlights...I barely even noticed it was him who'd lost possession, and a lot of the crowd weren't even in their seats when it happened. He was given a big ovation when he came off and a cheer at his MOTM too, so the crowd had obviously forgotten or forgiven it, so it struck me as extremely bizarre to see how often it was mentioned in the reporting/punditary, as if he'd played some Stevie G style backpass into danger or something rather than just lost the ball... And that's before I watched the ITV highlights, and saw Glenn Hoddle spewing praise all over the relatively poor Tottenham players for making space for his shot/finishing his supposedly mishit corner, as if he was some erstwhile grateful backup rather than the best player on the pitch.

How was he overall last night? I only saw from about 5 minutes before he scored onwards. I don't remember him touching the ball after he scored. Nice goal though. His shooting technique has come leaps and bounds.

He was quite easily our best player. Had a long shot tipped round the post in the first half, took the corner that led to the equaliser (all his corners were quite dangerous IIRC) played a delicious backheel into Ali for a clear chance early in the second and generally linked well with everyone and looked our most dangerous threat throughout.

 

[Shuriken]

Lovely goal yesterday. Quite the finish.

 

[Android1974]

IMO we can't play Lukaku and Rashford centrally. Differently but both preferring being shoulder to should with last defenders. Rashford would be stay wider playing with Lukaku while someone like Martial who loves to cut into the space between defense and midfield lines are better suited as central partner with Lukaku.

Maybe. But, until now, Mourinho has used mainly a playmaker kind of player along Lukaku, at least in 3-5-2, be it Mata or Mhkitaryan.

There will come a point when his finishing is good enough and all those players have to be tossed aside.

No, if they both come to that, they'll both play. Simple as that.

 

[hubbuh]

I'm not interested in guiding people onto the right path, nor have I implied that.

I won't be sarcastic in my response to you, but I think you need to stop trying to act smart. It is quite silly. Let's get back on topic.

It's ironic you'd take umbrage at the tone of someone's post when you just insulted the majority of the forum for 'not being able to find their feet'.

 

[Wedge]

This lad is head and shoulders above his England team mates attacking wise, when it comes to the bigger games, bigger countries will look to nullify rashford and stop Englands best attacker.

 

[JustinC00]

So who would you pick between the two for the left wing spot against stoke then?

Wouldn't surprise me if Jose starts the more rested Martial with the intention of resting Rashford for Basel 3 days later and only bringing him on if he needs to.

 

[Mainoldo]

So underrated compared to the other youngsters in world football it's kind of funny. Let's hope it stays this way and he keeps privately improving. Great finish yesterday. Mbappe fanatics would have been going wild.

 

[Hojoon]

He's a superb talent and has proved me wrong. When he first broke through I thought he was a one season wonder similar to Macheda in that he showed great efficiency/finishing but the rest of his game apart from pace was lacking. His finishing predictably hasn't been as efficient but he's improved his movement, striking technique, touch, dribbling, and vision.

 

[Android1974]

Wouldn't surprise me if Jose starts the more rested Martial with the intention of resting Rashford for Basel 3 days later and only bringing him on if he needs to.

Could be, it would make sense, even more when Martial started the last and didn't disappoint. But it's so early in the season and 5 days rest is so much time now, it might not be a worry.

 

[mazhar13]

The fact that the commentary team mentioned Rashford's 'mistake' probably 14/15 times is everything that is wrong with English football.

The lad received the ball under pressure and with very few options (thanks Kyle) tried to run the ball out of trouble. Had he succeeded, England would have been set up for a very dangerous counter. Even when he lost it, 25 yards from goal, Slovakia still had maybe 7/8 touches of the ball and England had maybe 7 players between the ball and the goal.

The media and the fans want to see England play beautiful football and they constantly bang on about our players needing to be braver on the ball. Yet when one of our young players tries to play football and loses the ball we have a meltdown! Can you imagine this happening in Spain/Italy/Germany?? No chance!

It all stems from being young and hearing coaches shout things like "dont mess around with it there" or "get rid of it" and "if in doubt put it out" - I mean, what kind of lessons are those for kids?!? No wonder half of our players shit themselves whenever they get the ball within 35 yards of our goal, they have been taught to fear possession in certain areas.

Yup, this really irked me as well. I wanted to mention this in the World Cup 2018 Qualifiers thread but was deterred by the potential backlash from several posters. Rashford had no way out from that situation. Slovakia did a great job in isolating him and pressing him out, but none of Rashford's teammates helped him out at all. Walker just ran far away, and the rest of his teammates didn't bother to offer up an option for him. On top of that, Cahill was shambolic in his defending, and whilst Rashford was at fault for ball-watching as well, he wasn't the primary culprit in this at all.

Beyond that, I was really annoyed at how Andy Hinchcliffe didn't praise Rashford's delivery for Dier's goal. Heck, he didn't even mention anything about it! All of the praise that he was giving out was to Dier and his movement and finish, and whilst that was pretty good, the fact that Rashford's delivery didn't receive a praise irked me. Then again, what else would you expect from a former Man. City player?

Finally, Walker didn't work with Rashford at all. You can see that Rashford was offering Walker the space behind Slovakia's back line on the right flank, but almost every single time, Walker decided to stay back until very late on when Henderson/Dier decided to switch the play to the other side. It probably annoyed Henderson enough that he started taking up Walker's job instead of overlapping Rashford. Things got much better for Rashford on the left, though, as Bertrand clicked with him and provided him much better support and options. I guess that's the difference between a player with brains and a player with pace.

On top of all that, it seemed like the media only appreciated Rashford once he scored that sweet drive to the bottom-left corner. Before that, no one even bothered to praise him even though he was becoming more influential, particularly as he switched to the left side. His decision-making was quite good, and he didn't seem to take on Slovakia on his own unlike Ox, Alli, or Kane, nor was he as lost on the pitch as Walker was. For me, he fully deserved the MOTM award as there was no other England player who was even good enough to challenge him on that honour other than Kane.

 

[Dobba]

Perfect opportunity to do the right thing and announce his international retirement. He's had a good run, time to focus on the important stuff at club level.

 

[Akshay]

On top of all that, it seemed like the media only appreciated Rashford once he scored that sweet drive to the bottom-left corner. Before that, no one even bothered to praise him even though he was becoming more influential, particularly as he switched to the left side. His decision-making was quite good, and he didn't seem to take on Slovakia on his own unlike Ox, Alli, or Kane, nor was he as lost on the pitch as Walker was. For me, he fully deserved the MOTM award as there was no other England player who was even good enough to challenge him on that honour other than Kane.

The English media only care about goalscorers and scapegoats. It's like everything that happens in between is completely lost on them unless they have an agenda to drive (e.g. silent domination). They probably wanted to write the Rashford scapegoat story since the first goal and his subsequent play wasn't convenient for them.

 

[Moonred]

Once his decision making improves he will be amazing.

 

[Rozay]

Exactly.

No idea why we'd want to stop being able to bring pace off the bench - something that has allowed us to win the games comfortably like we have been doing.

Don't think I'll ever get this logic.

Would be like Barcelona never allowing MSN to exist simply because if they played all 3, they wouldn't have a top forward to bring off the bench.

And Lingard can provide pace from the bench, as his profile and ability suggests he should be doing. Martial and Rashford are of the quality that they should be playing he majority of games. We might rely on subs less to win games if we didn't have Mata on the wing.

 

[AR87]

Don't think I'll ever get this logic.

Would be like Barcelona never allowing MSN to exist simply because if they played all 3, they wouldn't have a top forward to bring off the bench.

And Lingard can provide pace from the bench, as his profile and ability suggests he should be doing. Martial and Rashford are of the quality that they should be playing he majority of games. We might rely on subs less to win games if we didn't have Mata on the wing.

Neither Martial or Rashford are suited to play on the right. Playing them together only makes sense if one plays up top as a striker, which would require Lukaku to not be in the side, which is highly unlikely.

 

[el3mel]

Neither Martial or Rashford are suited to play on the right. Playing them together only makes sense if one plays up top as a striker, which would require Lukaku to not be in the side, which is highly unlikely.

Said this before. Don't understand the reason people think Rashford will be great on the right. He'll be restricted to only doing crosses and won't be able to do any of his penetration to the opposing defenses that he always does on the left.

He's a LW or a CF, just like Martial and thus they need to compete with each other for the LW position. Collecting all your top players by playing them off position and getting only 50-60% of their abilities isn't a good thing, considering you'll also leave yourself without any options on the bench.

Rashford and Martial are our current LWs and they need to compete with each other on this position. We should be pleased we have 2 great young talents competing on such a position.

 

[Catt]

Ours

This!

 

[Giggsyking]

 

[mazhar13]

That 2nd touch to set himself up for the shot is world class.

 

[Rozay]

Neither Martial or Rashford are suited to play on the right. Playing them together only makes sense if one plays up top as a striker, which would require Lukaku to not be in the side, which is highly unlikely.

Rashford is fine on the right.

 

[Handré1990]

On top of all that, it seemed like the media only appreciated Rashford once he scored that sweet drive to the bottom-left corner. Before that, no one even bothered to praise him

I really don't get this at all, but I sure do believe it, that's why I only turn on the games 5 mins before they start. What's that saying about experts and behinds?

For what it's worth, I switched over when Germany scored the 5th (50') and the first thing I heard was the Norwegian commentator proclaiming Rashford as the best player despite an unfortunate start. That was before the goal, and my friend who I watched with, a pretty biased Liverpool supporter, even said Rashford's handling of the ball was head and shoulder above anyone else on the field.

Someone said above that they hope people continue to underrate our boy, I can only agree and say his potential is second to none in his age group.

 

[Rozay]

Said this before. Don't understand the reason people think Rashford will be great on the right. He'll be restricted to only doing crosses and won't be able to do any of his penetration to the opposing defenses that he always does on the left.

He's a LW or a CF, just like Martial and thus they need to compete with each other for the LW position. Collecting all your top players by playing them off position and getting only 50-60% of their abilities isn't a good thing, considering you'll also leave yourself without any options on the bench.

Rashford and Martial are our current LWs and they need to compete with each other on this position. We should be pleased we have 2 great young talents competing on such a position.

Why will Rashford 'not be able to do any of his penetration to the opposition defence' from the right?

When he plays on the right, he does just that. It's just a different angle to shoot from, and on this basis, the left side suits Martial much more as he is a much more capable finisher from there. Rashford is also an excellent crosser, and as far as finishing goes - his shot last night, goal against City in pre- season, Sunderland away last season, Chelsea home last season are all examples of how he can finish well from an inside right position.

 

[AR87]

Rashford is fine on the right.

What matches has he played for United on the right and impressed? I struggle to think of one.

 

[Dante]

Neither Rashford nor Martial should be on the 'wing'. Leave those jobs to the fullbacks.

I'm happy with our attacking options, even as far as competing for the CL is concerned. What's needed now, is a right- and left-back that can unlock their potential. Shaw can do it at his best. Valencia needs to up the tempo of his passing.

What Rashford thrives on is freedom to go inside when he sees fit. That's what we need to allow him to do.

I think to get the most out of our frontline, we should let them do what they want. Play Pogba in the #10 where he can control possession and give the front 3 the opportunity to take risks. Herrera (on the right) and Matic (on the left) can be a terrific double pivot that cover the fullbacks when they're in the final third playing like wingbacks. I daresay that Mourinho still sees a future for Young, given how often he namechecks the guy.

 

[el3mel]

Why will Rashford 'not be able to do any of his penetration to the opposition defence' from the right?

When he plays on the right, he does just that. It's just a different angle to shoot from, and on this basis, the left side suits Martial much more as he is a much more capable finisher from there. Rashford is also an excellent crosser, and as far as finishing goes - his shot last night, goal against City in pre- season, Sunderland away last season, Chelsea home last season are all examples of how he can finish well from an inside right position.

Because Rashford's best foot is clearly the right one, so on the right flank his right foot will always be to the outside of the pitch limiting him to crossing with it but will have to shoot and penetrate with his weaker foot. On the left his strongest foot is to inside the pitch so has a better chance of doing stronger shoots and more penetration. That doesn't mean he can't shoot with his left but you want to put the players at the position they can give you 100% of their abilities not 50-60% then complaining the team is less than the sum of its parts. You're only giving 2 examples while I'm talking about " the majority " and " the general thing ". A player can play a good match in a certain position but that doesn't mean he can keep playing in this position his whole career, though.

Most of Rashford's great games and most of his assists coming from the flanks are done from the left flank, not the right one.

 

[santeria13]

What matches has he played for United on the right and impressed? I struggle to think of one.

Err maybe that game against the title holders where he was our best player and probably put in his best performance of the season?

 

[mazhar13]

Said this before. Don't understand the reason people think Rashford will be great on the right. He'll be restricted to only doing crosses and won't be able to do any of his penetration to the opposing defenses that he always does on the left.

He's a LW or a CF, just like Martial and thus they need to compete with each other for the LW position. Collecting all your top players by playing them off position and getting only 50-60% of their abilities isn't a good thing, considering you'll also leave yourself without any options on the bench.

Rashford and Martial are our current LWs and they need to compete with each other on this position. We should be pleased we have 2 great young talents competing on such a position.

I'd say that Rashford on the right is a completely different player to Rashford on the left. On the left, he plays as more of an inside forward, looking to carry the ball inside or drift inwards in order to get involved. The only occasions that he is out wide is if his team's counterattacking. On the left, Rashford makes the most of his quick dribbling and close control of the ball.

On the right side, he stays out wide and drops deeper than he does on the left. He frequently receives the ball on the byline and attempts to link up with players in the inside right areas. Rarely do I see him attempt to dribble past players on the right. It's probably because he isn't as dangerous cutting inside to his left foot, so defenders find it easier to contain him. This is when Rashford starts using his pace and acceleration more than his close control and quick manipulation of the ball as he does on the left. On the right, Rashford makes more use of his movement, passing, and link ups rather than his dribbling and directness.

This was the case against Slovakia for example. He was right at the byline trying to stretch the play. Almost every single time, he dropped deeper and looked for someone in the inside right area to link up. When no one was there, he held the ball for a couple of seconds before passing it back to Walker or Dier. That's when Henderson started to make more runs to the inside right in order to offer Rashford that option. This is also the reason that Rashford got better on the left as he could take on his full back more and become more of an inside threat. Just like any inverted winger, he feels more comfortable crossing with his weaker foot on the left side than cutting into his weaker foot on the right side.

If I had to decide on Rashford or Martial on the right, I'd go with Rashford as he has a better cross on him than Martial does. However, him on the right won't really make us that much more effective as he doesn't look to take players on as often as he does on the left side.

 

[el3mel]

I'd say that Rashford on the right is a completely different player to Rashford on the left. On the left, he plays as more of an inside forward, looking to carry the ball inside or drift inwards in order to get involved. The only occasions that he is out wide is if his team's counterattacking. On the left, Rashford makes the most of his quick dribbling and close control of the ball.

On the right side, he stays out wide and drops deeper than he does on the left. He frequently receives the ball on the byline and attempts to link up with players in the inside right areas. Rarely do I see him attempt to dribble past players on the right. It's probably because he isn't as dangerous cutting inside to his left foot, so defenders find it easier to contain him. This is when Rashford starts using his pace and acceleration more than his close control and quick manipulation of the ball as he does on the left. On the right, Rashford makes more use of his movement, passing, and link ups rather than his dribbling and directness.

This was the case against Slovakia for example. He was right at the byline trying to stretch the play. Almost every single time, he dropped deeper and looked for someone in the inside right area to link up. When no one was there, he held the ball for a couple of seconds before passing it back to Walker or Dier. That's when Henderson started to make more runs to the inside right in order to offer Rashford that option. This is also the reason that Rashford got better on the left as he could take on his full back more and become more of an inside threat. Just like any inverted winger, he feels more comfortable crossing with his weaker foot on the left side and cutting into his weaker foot on the right side.

If I had to decide on Rashford or Martial on the right, I'd go with Rashford as he has a better cross on him than Martial does. However, him on the right won't really make us that much more effective as he doesn't look to take players on as often as he does on the left side.

ُThanks. Exactly what I said in my previous post about his strongest foot but you made it much better clear.

 

[Dante]

I wouldn't be confident about any other teenager having the intelligence to mirror his game on the other side of the pitch. With Rashford, I'd be more surprised if he couldn't. For all his weaknesses (and does have more than a few) grit and adaptability aren't two of them.

 

[mazhar13]

Err maybe that game against the title holders where he was our best player and probably put in his best performance of the season?

That was as a forward in a front 2, not as a right winger. My most vivid memories of him as a right winger are him under van Gaal, when he was quite raw.

 

[Dante]

Neither Rashford nor Martial should be on the 'wing'. Leave those jobs to the fullbacks.

I'm happy with our attacking options, even as far as competing for the CL is concerned. What's needed now, is a right- and left-back that can unlock their potential. Shaw can do it at his best. Valencia needs to up the tempo of his passing.

What Rashford thrives on is freedom to go inside when he sees fit. That's what we need to allow him to do.

I think to get the most out of our frontline, we should let them do what they want. Play Pogba in the #10 where he can control possession and give the front 3 the opportunity to take risks. Herrera (on the right) and Matic (on the left) can be a terrific double pivot that cover the fullbacks when they're in the final third playing like wingbacks. I daresay that Mourinho still sees a future for Young, given how often he namechecks the guy.

Also, let's not forget Mourinho's Inter Milan system. Three narrow-ish pseudo-strikers, two attacking fullbacks, a double-pivot midfield and World Class #10 who could run the game on his own.

 

[AR87]

Err maybe that game against the title holders where he was our best player and probably put in his best performance of the season?

Err he played in a front 2 alongside Lingard not as a wide right player

 

[Isotope]

Also, let's not forget Mourinho's Inter Milan system. Three narrow-ish pseudo-strikers, two attacking fullbacks, a double-pivot midfield and World Class #10 who could run the game on his own.

I don't think Chivu is an attacking fullback. He's similar to Rojo, imho; a CB who's average as fullback. I see the style/type similarity of Milito = Lukaku, and Eto'o = Rashford, although about a level below in quality.

 

[GM K]

I can picture this Rashford kid at age 29.

Bearded. Veteran of many cup finals. Ballon D'Or winner. Already a living legend. Mentioned in the all time 'greats' conversations. Value = 5 billion pounds (yeah, football would have totally gone mad by then).

He will be that good.

 

[GM K]

If ox is worth £40m and sterling worth £50m then rashford is surely worth £70m.

If Mbappe is worth 160 million pounds, then Rashford is worth at least 100 million pounds.

 

[GM K]

Why will Rashford 'not be able to do any of his penetration to the opposition defence' from the right?

When he plays on the right, he does just that. It's just a different angle to shoot from, and on this basis, the left side suits Martial much more as he is a much more capable finisher from there. Rashford is also an excellent crosser, and as far as finishing goes - his shot last night, goal against City in pre- season, Sunderland away last season, Chelsea home last season are all examples of how he can finish well from an inside right position.

Interesting thing.

I was reading a Phil Jones interview a few days ago where he said Rashford was such a good TWO - FOOTED player.

I was really surprised to read that. Is he really two footed? Jones should know though.

If he is, then what a talent we have there and why shouldn't he be able to play from the right?

 

[Fridge chutney]

Easily the player I'm most excited about in the current side.
He just 'gets it.' He's not quite as talented as Ronaldo at his age but talent aside he just understands it's hard work, dedication, gym work and on the training pitch that will get him to the top...and that's clear to me where he wants to get to.
The evolution in his play this season to last is already massive. The flicks, the link up play, popping up in the middle of the park, dribbling in tight spaces but it's his snap shooting from range that has caught my eye, much like Ronaldo.
No doubt in my mind he will reach his full potential...the scary thing is if he keeps improving like this then his potential is whatever he likes...
Keep him out wide, I'd happily see the kid given the #7.

Well said Painer. Agree completely with this.

 

[Stacks]

If Mbappe is worth 160 million pounds, then Rashford is worth at least 100 million pounds.

So Rashford is worth more than Lukaku and Morata? Mbappe is a grossly overpriced transfer for sure as its so much based on hope. Same with Dembele. Its amazing that you now spend more on hope than the finished article. There seems to be no consideration for the risk that a prospect carries. Its just "this player shows signs of greatness" (irrespective of what period), he now costs more than established guys.

 

[ivaldo]

So Rashford is worth more than Lukaku and Morata? Mbappe is a grossly overpriced transfer for sure as its so much based on hope. Same with Dembele. Its amazing that you now spend more on hope than the finished article. There seems to be no consideration for the risk that a prospect carries. Its just "this player shows signs of greatness" (irrespective of what period), he now costs more than established guys.

I think with some players like Rashford and Mbappe there's little doubt that they'll fulfill a least a large percent of their potential. You won't see these guys disappear into obscurity. They're almost a sure thimg.

 

[Drainy]

So Rashford is worth more than Lukaku and Morata? Mbappe is a grossly overpriced transfer for sure as its so much based on hope. Same with Dembele. Its amazing that you now spend more on hope than the finished article. There seems to be no consideration for the risk that a prospect carries. Its just "this player shows signs of greatness" (irrespective of what period), he now costs more than established guys.

Lukaku and Morata were pre-Neymar

The world has changed since then. Lemar is £80m, Mbappe £160m, Dembele £120m or whatever. The market went insane.