Marcus Rashford was England's man of the match against Wales

Unstoppable Marcus Rashford into Golden Boot contention

By Edward Stratmann

Football

Sun December 04, 2022 · 3y ago

Handed his first start at the World Cup, Marcus Rashford emphatically vindicated Gareth Southgate's decision by bagging a brilliant brace to propel England to a 3-0 win over Wales.

Having come off the bench in England's opener to score against Iran, the England boss knew his explosive set of attributes could be a real game changer in this important final group clash with Wales.

And so it proved, for his exceptional rapid fire double, that included a particularly sensational free-kick, was pivotal towards the Three Lions breaking the deadlock and the Welsh spirits, in what was his first start for England in nearly 18 months.

Magnificent free kick to open the scoring

'Completely different player'

"It’s been a challenge for him,” Southgate said of Rashford, who's now joint leader in the Golden Boot race alongside Kylian Mbappe, Cody Gakpo and Enner Valencia.

“I went and saw him in the summer and had a long chat with him. He had some clear ideas on things he felt he needed to think about and to do.

`'You can see at his club there’s been happiness in his performances this year. That’s shown itself on the training ground all the time with us.

"We’ve got a different version completely to the player we had in the Euros last summer. He’s managed to produce those moments tonight.

"He could have had a hat-trick with the chance in the first half and the one at the near post towards the end. But it’s great for him and it’s great for us.”

A threat on both flanks

Initially deployed on the left flank before switching to the right in the second half, the Manchester United star was a constant source of danger for Wales due to his blistering speed and ball carrying, plus through his intelligent movement, both individually and collectively.

Forever asking questions of his marker, Neco Williams, and the Wales backline in general, with his probing movement, that saw him constantly mix things up to ensure defenders could never settle into a rhythm of how best to combat him, this gave him a formidable platform to excel.

To start with his movement in behind, and the way he waited for the right moment to pounce was a joy to watch.

Perfect foil for deep-lying Kane

Whether starting his surges from wide, where he'd both vertically and horizontally stretch Wales, or more centrally, where he shrewdly attacked the space left by Harry Kane and when the ball was on the far side, he was a persistent thorn in the side of his adversaries.

Crafty run into the central space created by Kane dropping

Expertly attacking the central space vacated by Kane

Timing and directing his movements astutely and so crafty to expose the blindside of defenders to gain a dynamic advantage and to get an edge over them if they were preoccupied, there were many occasions where the speedster enjoyed success.

Astutely timed run to exploit the blindside of his marker

Nicely timed and directed blindside run into the box

Indeed, his second goal served as a testament to his aptitude in this regard, for he masterfully tailored his movement to remain onside to latch onto Kalvin Phillips' measured through ball over the top with the separation he needed.

Once he got the ball under his control, the rest was history, for he bamboozled Connor Roberts with a series of feints and stepovers before blasting home his finish with aplomb.

Wicked run in behind prior to his second goal

Creates space for team-mates to thrive

It also warranted mention how if he was hugging the touchline, either dropping deep or about to surge into depth, how this generated room for Luke Shaw to underlap or for Jude Bellingham to target with damaging runs from midfield courtesy of Williams wanting to follow him closely.

Nifty underlap by Shaw after Rashford helped make the space for him

Checking deep to draw his man and open up the channel for Bellingham

To further shine the spotlight on his drops deep, and they also allowed him to check towards the ball to connect play and occupy quality positions between the lines.

Able to offer a passing lane to his defenders and midfielders while also creating vital room for Shaw to overlap, Bellingham to jet into or Harry Maguire to dribble into, these were important factors associated with his infield excursions.

Dovetailing smartly with Red Devils teammates Shaw and Maguire, which was completely understandable, but also with Bellingham, their subtle interchanges and space manufacturing for each other breathed plenty of life into England offensively.

Shaw receiving wide as Rashford pins his man inside

Smart rotation with Bellingham to occupy dangerous central space

Polished interchange with Bellingham to free up the BVB star

Pace in behind gives England extra option

Effectively pinning, drawing out and manipulating the opposition rearguard, Rashford and co's impact was certainly keenly left.

The 25-years-old's contribution on the ball was also littered with upside, with his dribbling wizardry especially prominent. Although he was neat and tidy with his passing to link play and move the ball crisply, there was no denying what a key asset his ball carrying was.

Blessed with electrifying pace, supremely balanced and boasting a nice repertoire of manoeuvres to outfox foes using his lightning changes of pace and direction, slick stepovers and whirring feints, this compounded issues for Wales.

While his aforementioned second goal was obviously a prime example of his prowess with the ball at his feet, this wasn't a one-off, as he provided plentiful threat during his 75 minutes afield to consistently strike fear into defenders.

Mazy dribble before applying his finish for his second goal

Putting in a solid shift defensively as well, further upside could be extracted from his dogged tracking back and intense pressing, with his efforts in the latter especially crucial, for his harrying to dispossess Ben Davies was the catalyst for England to recover possession ahead of their second goal.

Playing an instrumental role in all three goals and such a nightmare to keep tabs on for Wales, Rashford's heroic, multifaceted display that parlayed power, finesse, clinical finishing and teamwork, was unquestionably vital towards England's crushing victory.

By the numbers, his six shots, six touches inside the area, five successful dribbles, two progressive runs, six ball recoveries and two interceptions accentuated his outstanding body of work.

Having mixed the highs with the lows in recent times, Maguire was full of praise for his revitalised teammate, explaining: "I'm really pleased for Marcus. Over the last year or so obviously he's been out of the England team and England setup.

"I think he's really found his form again this season for Manchester United. He's a massive player for our club.

"Throughout a long career you're always going to have ups and you're always going to have downs and it's all about how you bounce back from when you're out of form and keep working hard and he's done that tirelessly.

"I can't speak highly enough of Marcus. He's a wonderful man and he's a great player. I think tonight again he's shown that he belongs on this stage. I think the last year or so has been difficult for him.

"All good players rise to the top again and I think if he keeps his head down, he keeps working hard, first and foremost for his club, he'll get opportunities for his country. When he gets that opportunity, with the confidence that he has, he's a threat to anyone."

Unstoppable against Senegal?

Nigh on unstoppable when on top of his game, England will be hoping Rashford, who can change a game in an instant with a moment of magic, will be at his best for their upcoming round of 16 clash with Senegal.

For if he can produce the goods like he did against Wales, if selected, then England will be well on their way to booking their ticket into the quarter-finals in their quest for glory in Qatar.