Gareth Southgate has defended his decision not to start Marcus Rashford during England's World Cup quarter-final defeat to France.
The Three Lions manager came in for criticism over the winter regarding his decision to bench the Manchester United forward for both of their knockout games, firstly handing him 26 minutes once the round-of-16 tie against Senegal was won before a meagre six-minutes in the eventual 2-1 defeat to Didier Deschamps' side.
Southgate twice opted for Manchester City's Phil Foden down the right for the knockout stages, and his decision was especially peculiar, given the Rashford's brilliant brace in the 3-0 win against Wales - his first and only start in Qatar. But the England boss, who has decided to stay in charge for the 2024 European Championships, has defended his choice.
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“I think people are looking at his form post tournament as much as anything,” Southgate said in an interview with ITV. “Had Marcus played and the result being like that, they’d have been saying Phil Foden should have played, or Jack Grealish, so I've got peace with what we did and how we went about it. I also know that's how the narrative always works after our games.”
While hindsight is of no use to either Southgate or those criticising him, Rashford's form since returning from Qatar has not helped the England manager's defence. The 25-year-old has found the net in nine of United's 10 games since the break, his brace in the Carabao Cup win over Charlton making it 10 goals from as many games.
Such form has handed the forward a nomination for the Premier League Player of the Month for January and encouraged Erik Ten Hag enough to urge the forward to sign a new deal at Old Trafford.
“This is the best place to be because we want to construct the best team – first in England, then Europe, then the world,” the Dutchman said earlier this week. “It is confidential, talks between clubs and players, [but] he understands Manchester United is his club and also in this environment, this team, he is playing his best football. He is improving, he is giving 100%.
“He can bring his qualities and this team can help him be in the right position to score goals. The team is constructed so that his qualities come to the fore. He knows he is important for us and if we want to succeed we need him.”
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