How Marcus Rashford can continue fine form against Leicester

For Marcus Rashford, the immediate euphoria of scoring a goal is rapidly replaced by the desperation to relive that explosion of joy.

“As soon as the ball goes in the back of the net, it’s like something goes off in your head,” Rashford once tried to explain. “It’s a moment you hold on to, but at the same time, as soon as you’ve done it once, you just want to do it again and again and again. You crave the feeling.”

Since returning from the World Cup – where he was England’s joint-top scorer despite limited minutes – Rashford has found the net again and again and again. Racking up a staggering 14 goals in 16 post-Qatar games to be precise.

But with the visit of an in-form Leicester City to Old Trafford this Sunday, how can Rashford continue to feed his goal cravings?

In the opening ten minutes of Manchester United’s season, Rashford was presented with a glorious sight of Brighton’s goal. On current form, United’s players would have already begun to run towards their teammate to celebrate the inevitable but back in those hazy August days, Rashford played in a daze, seemingly still weighed down by an abysmal 2021/22 campaign that would bring just four Premier League goals – as many as Fred.

After a dire afternoon in the 4-0 defeat to Brentford, Rashford kickstarted his and the club’s season in the 2-1 triumph against Liverpool that same month.

Playing at the tip of a sharpened Manchester United attack which returned to the swift counter-attacking style of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s best days, Rashford hared behind Liverpool’s rearguard before opening his account.

Both of Rashford’s goals against Arsenal in September came from similar darts into open space as he embraced Erik ten Hag’s approach on and off the pitch.

“It’s a complete different energy around the club and the training ground and that puts me in a better headspace,” Rashford, who scored eight goals across all competitions before the World Cup, explained. “I was struggling at times with more mental things. That’s the biggest difference from last season. Too often, I wasn’t in the right headspace for games.”

Since rampaging up the right flank and rifling in a solo goal against Burnley ten days after England’s World Cup quarter-final exit, Rashford has averaged a goal every 86 minutes for United.

Rashford is running slightly hot when comparing his actual haul to his expected goal (xG) tally – he is enjoying the best conversion rate since his debut campaign (20%) – but this is hardly a grossly unsustainable sequence; five Premier League players have outperformed their xG by a wider margin than Rashford this season (per FBref).

United’s top scorer is finishing a greater proportion of his chances because he is choosing when to pull the trigger more astutely. This season, Rashford’s shots have come from an average of 15.8 yards from goal. Prior to the current campaign, Rashford was taking aim from more than 19 yards out – comfortably beyond the confines of the penalty area.

Playing with undiluted confidence, Rashford is even scoring from unexpected angles. Off balance, hurtling away from the net, United’s number ten managed to squeeze his 22nd goal of the season between the post and Marc-Andre ter Stegen’s left arm in Manchester United’s Europa League tie with Barcelona on Thursday, matching the most prolific season of his career.

Alongside a mental rejuvenation, the dedicated 25-year-old hasn’t neglected his physical health, undergoing a personal training regime in the US during the off-season.

Ten Hag lauded Rashford’s commitment to self-improvement in December. “Marcus is a truly dedicated trainer and after every session, he always wants to finish a series of balls on goal,” Ten Hag told Voetbal International. “Right foot, left foot. From different angles, from crosses. And then with those headers.”

Those headers have accounted for four of Rashford’s haul this season, as many as he netted across the previous six campaigns.

Very much unlike Rashford, Leicester returned from the World Cup in a groggy stupor, losing their first four Premier League games post-Christmas. However, the Foxes have returned to winning ways this month, scoring eight goals in a pair of victories against Aston Villa and Tottenham.

However, the key to Leicester’s return to form may also prove to be a route to goal for Rashford.

Brendan Rodgers has lauded his side’s pressing in recent weeks, with centre-back Wout Faes marking Tottenham’s talisman, Harry Kane, particularly tightly. Yet, if the Foxes try to squeeze the pitch, it will leave space in behind for Rashford to scamper into.

When afforded green grass to streak into, Rashford stands above his peers. No player in the Premier League this season has taken more shots following a carry than the most in-form forward in Europe (per Opta).

Leicester have struggled to defend breakaways on either side of the World Cup. Only two clubs have conceded more goals from counter-attacks than the Foxes this season (four). United lead the league for goals scored from those transitionary situations (six).

Whether it’s on the break, in the air or from the byline, Rashford has a raft of options to continue his scoring streak against Leicester this Sunday.

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