Can Marcus Rashford be Manchester United's Leading Man?

Marcus Rashford had been struggling for form and game time under former Manchester United manager, Jose Mourinho, however since the arrival of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer the 21-year-old has found his goal-scoring touch again.

Six of Rashford’s nine goals during the campaign have come under Solskjaer, and with seven goal involvements in total in just ten appearances, there is no doubting that the England international is enjoying his football right now.

Despite his recent excellent displays, can he not only maintain this, but perform to a higher standard and follow in the footsteps of Wayne Rooney, Ruud Van Nistelrooy or Solskjaer himself?

This is already Rashford’s most prolific season in front of goal, with his previous best being seven in 2017/2018. In terms of goal involvements the youngster is also flourishing, notching six assists, beating his best of five from last campaign.

With a former top striker in Solskjaer helping Rashford to improve his game, Manchester United fans should only be excited by the forwards’ future at the club. Rashford’s ability to slice a defence open with a clever run, finish tidily into the corner of the net and his pure, natural skill on the ball can only get better with time and experience.

Himself and Paul Pogba have formed a good relationship in the past few weeks, with the Frenchman’s notable assists for Rashford coming in the games versus Tottenham and Leicester City, both away from home. If the pair can be held at the club for long enough, that partnership will only grow.

Keeping his place in the starting eleven may prove more difficult than fans realise, as big money signing Romelu Lukaku will be chomping at the bit in the last months of the season to recapture the form he showed for Everton and at times for his current employers. If Rashford sees a dip in form, there is a worry that the manager may look to Lukaku to find form again.

Under Mourinho Rashford struggled to keep his place in the side and was met with anger from supporters of the Red Devils when he missed a guilt-edged opportunity or performed below the expected standard, and though that is an arguably normal reaction, the youngster did not respond well. Instead he could not find confidence and fell completely out of favour at the club.

It is agreed amongst pundits and fans alike that Marcus Rashford has the potential to be one of the very best players in the world, and the attacker is one of the finest talents England has produced in the past few years.

There is no question that he can become the main man at Old Trafford and solidify his spot at the frontline of attack, it is more a question of who the next manager will be, and will he see Rashford as the man for the job?

If Rashford does eventually become a mainstay at United and continue to score vital goals, it will be considered a fairy tale of football, as the young lad from Wythenshawe in Manchester went on to live out every child’s dream and play at the highest level for the side he supported all his life.