Marcus Rashford is on the verge of making history for Manchester United. The English forward needs just one more goal to become the first United player to hit 30 across all competitions in a single season since Robin van Persie accomplished the feat in 2012-13. Despite suffering from a leg injury and a bout of illness, Rashford is expected to return to the starting lineup when United take on Feyenoord in their Europa League clash on Thursday.
Rashford missed United’s recent win over Wolves due to a leg injury that he suffered at West Ham. Subsequently, he had looked set to return against Bournemouth last weekend, only to suffer from a bout of illness. However, United won both those games without their attacking talisman, and they should get a key boost tonight with the 25-year-old forward having returned to full training at Carrington on Tuesday.
United need only a point from their final two games of the season against Chelsea and Fulham to secure a top-four finish and qualification for the Champions League, officially condemning arch-rivals Liverpool to the Europa League. Thus, ensuring they are in the top four as quickly as possible is of the utmost importance, considering the fact that they still have the FA Cup final and the chance to potentially stop Manchester City from winning a famous treble to come at Wembley on June 3.
The Manchester United manager, Erik ten Hag, has confirmed that Rashford is back to full fitness, and he is expected to reclaim his place in the starting lineup. “It looks like he’ll be fit. Yesterday, he returned to training. He looks quite fit, but we have to see today what is the outcome of the training, how we recover and then we will make our choices,” said Erik ten Hag.
United are still without key players in Lisandro Martinez and Marcel Sabitzer, but they have most of the rest of the squad available, minus the likes of Phil Jones, Tom Heaton, and Donny van de Beek. The predicted United starting XI for Thursday’s game is as follows: De Gea; Wan-Bissaka, Varane, Lindelof, Shaw; Casemiro, Eriksen; Antony, Fernandes, Rashford; Martial.
In conclusion, Marcus Rashford’s return to full fitness is a massive boost for Manchester United, who are keen on sealing a top-four finish and booking their place in next season’s UEFA Champions League. With his incredible scoring prowess, Rashford can make the difference in the remaining games of the season and help United finish a somewhat disappointing season on a high note.
