“He Can Change the Game”- Juan Mata Lauds Manchester United Teammate Marcus Rashford

Marcus Rashford has been one of the biggest stars to come out of Manchester United’s academy in quite some time. The young forward had been similarly decisive for England, barring a missed penalty in the final of the UEFA EURO 2020.

This led to him receiving a lot of hate and abuse on social media, and teammates and other players were quick to come out to show their support for him.

One of his Manchester United teammates, Juan Mata, revealed what he thought about the forward’s prospects in the world of football. HaytersTV uploaded an excerpt of the interview to their Instagram account.

“He has been great for us since he started. When we saw him training in the first team, we felt something special about him, and he is doing it.

“He is making some good steps in his evolution. He is a great player with great conditions, good mentality as well, which is really important for his age,” Mata said.

Mata also added that Rashford regularly scores goals for England and United and that he possesses the skill to turn the game on its head in a second.

“Scoring goals for England and for us, and happy to have him in our team. He can change the game with one sprint and one piece of skill.

“He is a great talent that hopefully will be great for both United and England for many years to come,” Mata concluded.

Marcus Rashford and his ill-fated campaign at the Euros

The fact that Rashford made the English squad for the European Championships came as a surprise to a lot of people. He was carrying shoulder and back injuries throughout the season and he was really struggling towards the end.

However, English manager Gareth Southgate called him up and gave him minimal game time in the entire tournament.

The most significant of it came in the final match against Italy where England was leading by 2-1 during the penalty shootout and Rashford stepped up to take his penalty. He sent the Italian goalkeeper Donnarumma the wrong way but hit the post.

England unraveled from that point and lost the entire penalty shootout after missing two consecutive penalties. Italy won the EURO and Gianluigi Donnarumma took home the player of the tournament award.

Read More: “I Didn’t Understand We Had Won”-Gianluigi Donnarumma Reveals Why He Did not Celebrate Italy’s Euro 2020 Win Over England.