It's time for Manchester United to start Marcus Rashford
Manchester United must start Marcus Rashford with Zlatan Ibrahimovic
When Manchester United acquired Zlatan Ibrahimovic this summer, everyone knew things were going to be different for Marcus Rashford. Unfortunately, it meant the starlet was relegated to Jose Mourinho’s bench. It’s time for the Special One to reverse that decision.
United’s 2-1 defeat to City in the Manchester Derby clinched it for me. It’s time for Rashford to be reintroduced to the club’s starting XI. I’m not suggesting he should start in place of Ibrahimovic though. I think there’s a natural home for him out on Mourinho’s wing.
United elected to start Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Jesse Lingard in their wide attacking positions against City. Neither of them performed anywhere near adequately. Lingard exited the match with a Whoscored.com player rating of 6.0 and Mkhitaryan finished with a slightly better mark of 6.2. Their failings were a big reason why United couldn’t get a foothold during the opening 45 minutes.
For the time being, Rashford should take one of their places. It certainly isn’t his most natural position, but he showed he could be effective out wide during his play for England in the Euros. Mourinho should allow him to build on that showing to influence his club in the short-term.
The United attack would be significantly more dangerous with Rashford and Anthony Martial manning the two flanks. Imagine the space and service that duo could create for Ibrahimovic. That trio would be an absolute nightmare for opposing Premier League defenses.
Get the FanSided App
The downside to starting Rashford is that United would miss Lingard’s industry on the defensive end of the pitch. That’s why he’s currently holding out to his place in Mourinho’s starting XI despite his minimal offensive output. You have to believe that the club could overcome that loss of work rate with a talent like Paul Pogba roaming in the middle of the pitch.
While I believe starting Rashford on the wing is the right thing for Mourinho to do, I wouldn’t expect him to make the change immediately. He’ll likely stick with Martial on one wing, and either Lingard or Mkhitaryan on the other. That’s the more conventional, and safe choice.
It must also be said that starting Rashford with Ibrahimovic does make United a little thin at the striker position. If he suffered an injury playing out wide, Mourinho might have to rely in Ibrahimovic more than he originally planned throughout the entire campaign.
Still, United fans expect their club to compete for a Premier League title, and they can’t do that without some effective wide play. Inserting Marcus Rashford into one of the wing spots would boost the Red Devils’ attack immediately.
More from Playing for 90
This article originally appeared on 
