Marcus Rashford has set a new personal best goal return at Manchester United with a stunning performance against Liverpool.
The 20-year-old forward has been an unfortunate victim of Alexis Sanchez’s arrival at Old Trafford and the form of fellow frontmen, with starts having been in short supply of late.
Prior to being recalled to the fold in a crunch clash with Liverpool, Rashford’s last Premier League start had come against Burnley on Boxing Day.
He was, however, to reward Jose Mourinho’s show of faith against the Reds with a talismanic performance.
Having been allowed to slip past Trent Alexander-Arnold in the 14th minute, Rashford brought Old Trafford to its feet with a stunning opening goal which flashed past Loris Karius.
He then doubled that advantage 10 minutes later as Liverpool were carved open once, with that strike taking him to 12 for the season across all competitions – bettering his previous best of 11 from 2016-17.
Rashford’s opener was also his first goal in the Premier League since a derby date with Manchester City on December 10, 2017.
A productive afternoon for the England international also brought him a first brace in the top flight since his memorable debut against Arsenal in February 2016.
He has shown himself to be a man for the big occasion, with his record against fellow top-six sides making for impressive reading.
6 - Six of Marcus Rashford's 15 goals in the Premier League have come in matches against other 'big six' teams (40%). Stunner. https://t.co/HXkW8MnaBF
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) March 10, 2018
Rashford has been lethal in games which really matter, with his finishing ability taken up a notch when opportunities have to be taken in the knowledge that clear sights of goal may be in short supply.
29% - Marcus Rashford has scored with 29% of his shots in the Premier League against 'big six' clubs, compared to a 10% ratio against the other teams. Talent. #MUNLIV
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) March 10, 2018
Helping to down Liverpool with his latest efforts will be a source of great pride to Manchester native Rashford, as will the fact that he has become the first United player to score twice in the first half of a meeting with their old adversaries from Merseyside since Gary Pallister in 1997.
He will be hoping for more of the same in the weeks to come, with it now up to the youngster to try and raise the bar as high as he can when it comes to goalscoring exploits across a single campaign.