Marcus Rashford told he is “not a No.9” despite front three ambition

Former England and Liverpool winger John Barnes has told Marcus Rashford that he is not a striker, despite Rashford speaking previously about wanting to play across the front three.

Marcus Rashford has played rather brilliantly for Manchester United this season, scoring 21 goals under Erik ten Hag‘s guise, including most recently back-to-back headers against Leeds United in the Premier League.

Rashford has drummed up some crucial finishes so far this season, including winners against the likes of Leeds United and Manchester City, as well as three goals across two games when faced against current Premier League leaders, Arsenal.

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Rashford has also accumulated seven assists, showing an increase in his creative capabilities.

Despite this good form, John Barnes, who made 79 appearances for England and scored 11 times as a winger, has told BonusCodeBets that Rashford is not a centre-forward.

“Rashford is not a centre-forward,” claimed Barnes. “As much as he wants to play as a No.9, he’s getting into the middle, scoring headers, coming in from the wide positions and I think that’s already been settled, in terms of the position he plays.”

Marcus Rashford has mainly occupied the left-wing of United’s front three this season, supported by either Luke Shaw or Tyrell Malacia on the left. There has been a level of uncertainty as to who his striker is, with Cristiano Ronaldo, Anthony Martial, and Wout Weghorst all filling the role at times, but that has not stopped him scoring plenty of goals.

One factor Barnes believes has benefited Rashford immensely is the departure of Ronaldo, who has his contract terminated after an unsanctioned and scathing interview with Piers Morgan.

“I think that since Ronaldo has gone, look at Sancho, look at Rashford, a lot of players are doing better because Ronaldo overshadowed them,” explained Barnes. “I think Rashford had a bit of a dip, because he wanted to be one of the main players of Man Utd, as he is.”

“I think it’s not a surprise to me that you can see an improvement in him since Ronaldo is not there anymore.”

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One significant part of Ronaldo’s career that Marcus Rashford has previously explained that he wants to replicate is Ronaldo’s ability to play across the front three with equal effectiveness.

“I want to be able to play in all positions effectively,” Marcus Rashford told Gary Lineker in a BBC interview when he was 21-years-old. “No. 9 is obviously the dream, but for me, in this day and age now, it’s ideal to be as effective as you are at No. 9 on the left or the right.”

Since then, it has become clear that Rashford’s most effective position is playing on the left wing, cutting in and just all round wreaking havoc on the Premier League.

However, there have been signs that Rashford’s all-round game is improving – he has started to use his weaker foot more often, creating and scoring several goals in the last few months with his left.

As Marcus Rashford continues to develop under Erik ten Hag, the prospect of just how good he can become is almost frightening (for other Premier League teams, of course). With Rashford set to break the numbers for his best goal scoring season yet, he can certainly become one of Manchester United’s most important players alongside the likes of Casemiro, Luke Shaw, and Lisandro Martinez.