The Rise of Marcus Rashford

By V. Fasano

Born on 31st of October of 1997 in Manchester, Marcus has always had a strong passion for football. At the age of 7, he enrolled into Manchester United’s U-8 team and has remained in the club ever since. In 2016, Rashford finally made his professional team debut, a 5-1 win against Danish club Midtjylland, in which he managed to score twice. He was, at the time, the youngest ever player to score in a European competition for United, at the age of 18.  

Up until the UEFA Euro 2020 tournament, things were great for Marcus. Manchester’s number 10, fan favorite and starting for England’s national team. Although his career took a sudden turn, as the 2020 Euro cup arrived. Rashford had a poor tournament, despite England managing to reach the final as favorites, against Italy. The final was tied 1-1, as manager Southgate made the substitution which would change Marcus Rashford’s life, as he entered the game in the final minute, simply to score in the penalty shootout. It was England’s third penalty of the shootout, Rashford stepped up and, missed. This eventually led to England’s elimination of the tournament, giving the trophy straight to the Italians. Unfortunately, Rashford suffered immense criticism for his miss, as millions of fans racially abused him on social media platforms. His form dropped in the following years, as he had lost all his confidence, up until today. 

Manchester United appointed Dutch manager, Erik Ten Hag in the beginning of this current season (2022/23), a decision that rebirthed Rashford’s career. Since the manager was appointed, Rashford has scored 24 goals and assisted 8, making it the season in which he has scored the most goals in the entirety of his career (there are still 3 months left until the end of the season). The Englishman has carried his team to the round of 16 of the Europa league, following a 4-3 aggregate win against Spanish giants, Barcelona; while also leading his team into the top-4 of the premier league. Marcus Rashford went from the most hated man in England, to currently, the best winger in world football simply two years after his missed penalty. ​