Marcus Rashford has been a household name in England for a while but his performances at the World Cup are starting to spread his fame worldwide.
He fired home the first free-kick of the tournament in Wales and ended the game with a brace to take his goal tally to three for the tournament. The raised eyebrows after his omission from Gareth Southgate’s line-up against Senegal showed how much public opinion of his form has changed since the summer.
After a horrid 2021/22 season, Rashford has rediscovered his feet under Erik ten Hag. His confidence is back and as a result is Manchester United’s top scorer this season with eight goals.
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Rashford admitted he “wasn’t in the right headspace” last term but is loving life under the guidance of Ten Hag, describing him as a “joy to work with”.
Speaking in November, he said: "The manager likes possession football but he is also in favour of letting us go for the kill – and that’s what I am all about. I am enjoying my football again, 100 per cent.”
Two months earlier, Ten Hag said he saw a “happier” Rashford at United, adding: “We worked really hard in the last two-and-a-half months with him on different aspects. He likes it, and he wants to transfer it to the pitch, and that is what you see in this moment.”
Rashford’s contract expires next summer but Ten Hag is determined to keep him at Old Trafford. "I don't think he is out of contract [in the summer], I think United control the situation,” the Dutchman insisted.
The 25-year-old has an option to trigger a 12-month extension and although the process is straightforward, options elsewhere can look attractive. Paris Saint-Germain have publicly declared their interest in Rashford, who held talks with the French champions last summer.
Club president Nasser Al-Khelaifi said he liked the idea of bringing in Rashford on a free. “To have Rashford for free, every club would run after him, definitely,” he said.
"We're not hiding it, we spoke before and… interest. But the moment was not a good moment for both sides. Maybe, summer, why not?
"Today if he's a free agent of course we can talk to him directly but we are not going to talk to him now. Let him focus on the World Cup. Then after in January, hopefully, if we're interested we will talk to him."
This should alert Ten Hag and the board. Given his form this season and the club’s current striker shortage, it should prompt the Reds boss to push through a new deal, or at least the extension, when Rashford returns from the World Cup.
Speculation will circle around potential United targets in January but Ten Hag could do without rumours about one of his forward options leaving. United can prevent this by securing his future before the new year.
The same also applies to Diogo Dalot, who may also enter the mind of Ten Hag. His deal expires in June and United currently do not have a backup at right-back.
United will be confident of keeping both players but in order to keep his fingernails unbitten, Ten Hag may wish to wrap up deals for these important players to set the record straight and keep it clean going into 2023.
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