Marcus Rashford once asked Manchester United academy coaches if he could change from being a striker to a holding midfielder after enduring a confidence-stricken period in his younger days.
The attacker has scored 27 goals this season in what is his highest-scoring campaign to date. His clinical finishing has brought about praise, with attacking coach Benni McCarthy hailed for his work with the 25-year-old.
A number of analysts have also commented on his physical improvement since last term, suggesting Rashford’s bulk-up has helped his game. It’s an area he struggled in during his academy career, so much so it had led him to request a positional change.
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Neil Ryan, former United academy coach, explained to FourFourTwo: “In the under-12s and under-13s, he was fantastic and often up against older boys. You didn’t feel that it was effortless like it was with Ravel Morrison.
"Marcus’ attitude and talent always stood out, but aged 14 he had a confidence crisis and wanted to be a holding midfielder. I recall talking to his mother and brothers. He spoke about wanting to get on the ball more.
"He didn’t have the pace then to burn past others because he was still growing, but we always thought he’d be a forward.” A recent example of a player who did alter his position in later years is Scott McTominay, who was a striker at academy level and is now a central midfielder.
He showed he still has his eye for goal with four goals for Scotland during the international break, with two of them coming in the 2-0 win over Spain. Meanwhile, ex-academy coach Paul McGuinness believes Rashford still has even more to offer with his own striking abilities.
“He has so much more to come,” he said. “I like to show his January goal against Nottingham Forest in the coaches’ presentations I do.
“He ran from the halfway line, it’s so exciting and dynamic. He sprints through them all and blows them away. It was like a goal he scored in the youth team. Just imagine if he had somebody up front with him who he was better to play off.”
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