- Planet Sport writer
- 10 August 2024
Erik ten Hag praises Marcus Rashford's drive to reclaim top Man Utd form
Coach Erik ten Hag has stated that Marcus Rashford is "highly ambitious and driven" to regain his top form with Manchester United.
Marcus Rashford is an English footballer who plays for Manchester United in the Premier League and for the England national team.
Rashford is also famous for his social activism outside of football, as he has fought for the right of disadvantaged British children to have free school meals.
Rashford burst onto the scene as a teenager at United after coming through their youth academy. After representing England at various youth levels, he made his debut for the senior national team under Roy Hodgson in 2016.
In 2020, during the Covid-19 pandemic, Rashford wrote an open letter to the UK government calling on them to end child poverty. He also successfully managed to lobby for a change in policy regarding the extension of free school meals in the school holidays.
Rashford was awarded the MBE for his charity work, but on the pitch he has FA Cup, Europa League and two League Cup winners' medals.
Career at Manchester United
Rashford started his career with Fletcher Moss Rangers at the age of five as a goalkeeper and has cited former Manchester United stopper Tim Howard as an early source of inspiration.
At the age of seven, Rashford joined Manchester United's youth system, having previously spent a week training with Manchester City. He reportedly snubbed Liverpool and Everton to join the Red Devils.
Rashford often had to miss training due to a lack of transport, as his mother and brothers were working. Youth coaches Dave Bushell, Eamon Mulvey and Tony Whelan helped Rashford find drivers to get him to the training ground.
Rashford was quickly earmarked as a potential star and was fast-tracked through the age group system. He trained with the first team during the 2013/14 season under the management of David Moyes.
In 2015, after Nicky Butt had appointed Rashford as captain of the Manchester United Under-19 team, he found himself on the bench for the senior team for their 2-1 Premier League win over Watford under Louis van Gaal.
Rashford was thrown into first team action in a UEFA Europa League round of 32 tie against Midtjylland in February 2016 due to an injury picked up by Anthony Martial in the warm-up. He impressed immediately, scoring two goals on his debut in a 5-1 win.
Three days later, Rashford made his Premier League debut against Arsenal, scoring two goals and providing the assist for the other in a 3-2 win for Manchester United.
On March 20, he scored the only goal of the derby against Manchester City, helping United to their first away league win over City since 2012.
A superb curling strike helped Manchester United to a sixth round FA Cup replay win over West Ham United. They ended up winning the trophy, with Rashford up-front in the final against Crystal Palace. Rashford finished the season with eight goals from 18 appearances.
During the 2016/17 season, Rashford faced increased competition for places as new manager Jose Mourinho had signed iconic Swedish striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
By Mourinho's own admission, he did not see Rashford as an out-and-out number nine. Consequently, Rashford spent much of the season either on the bench or on the wing, but still made 53 appearances, winning the Europa League and EFL Cup in the process.
Rashford went on to make 52 appearances in the 2017/18 season as United finished second in the Premier League behind a rampant Manchester City.
In the 2019/20 season he scored 17 Premier League goals, which equalled his tally in the two previous seasons combined. As a result he came third in the Football Writers' Association Footballer of the Year award.
Injuries, dips in form, and Manchester United's fall from grace perhaps put the brakes on Rashford becoming a true star on the world stage. But he still made his 250th appearance for the club in February 2021 and ended the season with 11 Premier League goals and 11 assists.
The arrival of Erik ten Hag in the 2022/23 season appeared to reinvigorate Rashford and he scored his 100th United goal in October against West Ham.
Rashford hit a rich vein of form after returning from the World Cup and took his goal tally for the season to 25, across all competitions, before the Carabao Cup final in late February 2023.
He had a major hand in Manchester United's second goal in the final, after Newcastle's Sven Botman deflected his strike over goalkeeper Loris Karius and into the net for an own goal.
United went on to win the match 2-0 and end their longest trophy drought in 40 years, and Rashford collected his second League Cup winners' medal.
The England national team
Despite earlier suggestions that he would remain in the England youth ranks for some time in order to protect his development, Rashford was fast-tracked into Roy Hodgson's Euro 2016 squad.
He made his debut for the England senior national team on May 27, 2016, starting a warm-up match against Australia and scoring after three minutes. He thus became the youngest Englishman to score on his international debut.
In the 2-1 win over Wales at the tournament finals, Rashford came on as a substitute for Adam Lallana.
Rashford was part of the England side that finished fourth at the 2018 World Cup in Russia under Gareth Southgate, the team's best performance at a major tournament since 1990. He was also influential in helping England qualify for Euro 2020.
At the tournament itself, though, Rashford struggled to make a major impact. He did not start any of England's seven games as they reached the final of the competition for the first time in their history.
In the final himself, he was a late substitute in extra-time with the penalty shootout in mind. However, he was one of three players (along with Jadon Sancho and Bukayo Saka) to miss from the spot as Italy won the trophy at Wembley.
Poor form saw him fall out of favour with England manager Gareth Southgate over the next year, but he forced his way back into the squad just in time for the 2022 World Cup.
In his first game in an England shirt since the Euro 2020 final, he came off the bench to score the fifth goal in the 6-2 group stage win in Qatar.
In the final World Cup group game against Wales, Rashford, making his first England start since June last year, scored a fine free-kick to break the deadlock before scoring again to round off the 3-0 victory after Phil Foden had doubled the lead.
Personal life
Rashford was appointed a Member of the British Order (MBE) in October 2020 for his activism against poverty.
He continues to use his platform to push the UK government to adopt policies which would enable children from underprivileged backgrounds to be fed adequately.
In June 2020, during the pandemic, Rashford wrote an open letter to the British parliament saying: "The Government has taken a 'whatever it takes' approach to the economy - I'm asking you today to extend that same thinking to protecting all vulnerable children across England.
"I encourage you to hear their pleas and find your humanity. Please reconsider your decision to cancel the food voucher scheme over the summer holiday period and guarantee the extension.
"This is England in 2020, and this is an issue that needs urgent assistance.
"Please, while the eyes of the nation are on you, make the U-turn and make protecting the lives of some of our most vulnerable a top priority."
In his letter, he cited his own experience as a child, relying on the generosity of the community around him to help him survive in trying circumstances.
In September, Rashford formed the Child Food Poverty Task Force, with charities and food businesses uniting to put pressure on the government to ensure the UK's children are adequately fed.
Marcus Rashford's net worth
Rashford earns £200,000 per week at Manchester United. He is represented by Roc Nation, Jay-Z's talent management company.
