Jesse Lingard was quick to praise former Manchester United teammate Marcus Rashford following Sunday's 2-0 win at Leeds United.
Rashford helped his United side record a fifth win in six games across all competitions, his goal opening the scoring on a tough afternoon at Elland Road. Erik ten Hag made three changes from the team that pulled a two-goal deficit back against the Whites on Wednesday, and the Dutchman watched from the sidelines as his side were once again pressed and harried from the off.
But a combination of a resilient red back-line and Leeds' lack of quality in the final third saw 80 minutes pass without a goal. And then in a near-mirror image from midweek, Rashford was moved into a more central role before instantly getting on the end of a cross - this time from the left-hand side and Luke Shaw.
RATINGS: Rashford and Shaw good in Leeds win
With the Reds buoyed from taking the lead, Fred pounced in midfield and the ball eventually fell to Alejandro Garnacho, the 18-year-old bursting past a tired Robin Koch before firing past Illan Meslier. Ten Hag's side had the ball in the net twice more in the final few minutes, but both Rashford and Wout Weghorst - still eyeing a first league goal - were ruled offside.
Shortly after the three points were secured, Rashford posted a picture of him celebrating the opener alongside the caption: "Important win!"
Lingard was one of many to comment on the post as he praised a former teammate. The former Reds' reply said: "Different gravy son".
The midfielder, now at Nottingham Forest, received plenty of love from the United fanbase as well, with his comment receiving more than 6,200 likes while a huge number of supporters sent heartfelt messages to the 30-year-old.
Fans also responded to the comment themselves.
One wrote: "We love you Lingaarrrddd," while another added: "We miss you... The entire Man U squad does... Come back already."
A third replied: "We love you Jesse we do," with another adding: "Hope you're doing ok bro you're missed at Utd send love."
Lingard recently opened up on his personal struggles while at United, during a candid interview on The Diary of a CEO podcast. The former England international
"The depression was so bad she [his mother] couldn’t really cope and she needed to go away and get help," he said back in January. "But leaving me with my little sister, who was 11 at the time, and my little brother, who was 15, for me, I was still going through my own things as well.
"So I wasn’t really the big brother they wanted at the time. They always get the fun, laughy, bubbly Jesse and I was going through my own things, so I was on autopilot. I just wasn’t there, mentally wasn’t there. I was on the pitch but I didn’t want to be on the pitch, I didn’t want to play."
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