Mourinho Proven Right as Past Comments About Rashford Playing as Target Man Resurface

• Jose Mourinho had an interesting take on Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford playing as a target man
• Rashford is yet to get off the mark, two league games into the season
• Erik ten Hag played Rashford as a lone striker against Wolves and Tottenham without much success

Jose Mourinho appears to have been spot on with his take on Marcus Rashford playing as a classic Number 9 in the Manchester United squad.

Despite having the most prolific season of his career in 2022/23, Rashford has struggled to replicate his form in the new season in his last two games.

United recently signed Rasmus Winther Højlund, but the striker’s injury issues have meant that Erik ten Hag has had to improvise up front.

In 2022, sources quoted on Express Sport stated that Ten Hag was keen on making Rashford the club’s number one striker, a move that would see him abandon the flanks to become the main man up front.

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Going by his performances as a Number 9 against Wolves and in the 2-0 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur, Rashford’s struggles were there for everyone to see, and this brought forth Mourinho’s past hot take on the England international.

What Mourinho said

In an appearance on Sky Sports in 2019, Mourinho, who had some experience coaching Rashford during his short stint as United boss, hailed the forward as a terrific player, but was adamant that he could not play as a classic Number 9.

“I am not going to say he cannot ever be a number nine, he can be a dangerous number nine especially if the opposition is not pragmatic, is not close and is giving spaces to attack. He can be dangerous in transitions,” Mourinho said, as quoted on Metro.co.uk.

“He is not the target man, he doesn’t score as many goals as a striker should do.”

“So I think from the side you will get him to numbers of 10-12 goals per season.”

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Arsenal troll Caicedo

Sports Brief also reported on Arsenal’s apparent dig at Moses Caicedo after his nightmare debut for Chelsea.

The North Londoners posted a picture of former West Ham captain Declan Rice smiling in his Arsenal training kit and captioned the post with a waving hand.

Fans were quick to note that this could be a direct dig at Chelsea amid the longstanding debate on which club has the best central midfielder in the league.