Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford has praised his ‘extraordinary’ teammates at Old Trafford for fuelling his superb individual form after the World Cup break.
The 25-year-old enjoyed his best-ever goalscoring campaign at United, netting 30 times in 56 games across all competitions to win the Carabao Cup trophy and secure a third-place finish in the Premier League.
Amid a good season throughout, Rashford was incredible after returning from World Cup duties with England. For long periods he was the most clinical player in Europe after Qatar, enjoying a run of 16 goals in 17 appearances.
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“I just tried to keep working hard,” Rashford said on his post-World Cup form. “I’ve been working hard from the beginning of the season. We didn’t start the season very well, but as the team improved, I improved and that’s credit to my teammates because as a forward the only thing you can do is make runs.
“It’s up to your teammates to be able to find the passes and make your runs count. I have some fantastic teammates that have some extraordinary capabilities and it’s a big thanks to them.”
The Red Devils progressed into the latter stages of every competition – as well as Carabao and FA Cup finals, they made it to the last eight of the UEFA Europa League – and it saw them have one of their most congested schedules.
Rashford played 56 matches for his club plus another five at the Qatar World Cup, but a slow end to the campaign suggested he was far from fully fit.
A call-up for England for Euro 2024 qualifiers against Malta and North Macedonia could take Rashford to 63 games for the campaign, and the player has criticised what he believes to be a dangerously packed schedule.
Asked whether he believes the schedule is too busy, he said: “To be honest I think that’s evident. It’s mad that at club level, we’re playing against teams that play one game a week and we’re playing three games a week from November up until we got knocked out of the Europa League. It’s difficult but at the same time, we’re used to doing it. But I don’t think it’s right.
“In the earlier stages of my career I just couldn’t make sense of it. I know some managers have spoken about it, but if one team is playing 60 games in a year and another 38 there needs to be some time for the team that’s playing 20 extra games to recover and prepare properly for the games.”
