Why Marcus Rashford is a Man United captain in the making

There is absolutely no doubting the incredibly high ceiling to Marcus Rashford’s talent. He has comfortably made a strong argument as being one of the best young up-and-comers in World football, but it is also his off field ‘antics’ and on field attitude that is guaranteed to reward him with the captain’s armband one day.

Harry Maguire has made somewhat of a solid start to his Manchester United career which has seen him deservedly earn the armband himself. There are traits we see in him that Marcus seems to carry on his shoulders also (and I don’t mean that slab head). You will not see Rashford spit his dummy out, have a tantrum or think he is bigger than the club, unlike what we have seen in the past from some of his current and former teammates. He is the sort of lad to roll his sleeves up, get stuck in and rise on the big occasion; such as scoring a brace against Liverpool, ending Martin Demichelis’ career and scoring in multiple Manchester derbies, but also encouraging his teammates and making his voice heard on the pitch.

Marcus makes regular visits to his boyhood club Fletcher Moss Rangers as being a local lad from Wythenshawe. He is no stranger in remembering where he came from and encouraging the young lads from the same area where he grew up, that the sky really is the limit and with the hard work and dedication that Rashford has shown, it is possible to make it on the big stage, further adding to his role model image.

The Coronavirus pandemic of 2020 has been one of the most unprecedented times the planet has ever seen; from thousands of deaths, millions of jobs lost and put on hold, as well as the more than ever need of help, that those less fortunate may find themselves relying on. The Manchester United star has so far raised £20million for FareShare, the UK’s largest charity for fighting hunger and food waste. He, and the tens of thousands of generous donators, has ensured more than 2.8 million school children have a guaranteed daily school dinner.

Along with his immense talent and extraordinary charity work, he also lives a fairly quiet life, following in the footsteps of some other great Manchester United legends such as Paul Scholes and Michael Carrick. It really does look like Rashford knows what it means to be an instrumental figure at Manchester United and a role model for anyone wanting to become a part of the beautiful game. David Beckham himself said in an interview with TalkSport ‘Marcus Rashford reminds me of me’. High praise from one of the all time England greats who enjoyed some of United’s most successful years.

If we can take one thing away from Louis Van Gaal’s time as manager of Manchester United, it wouldn’t be the 2016 FA Cup or his infamous dive against Arsenal, it would be Marcus Rashford’s introduction and the line of debut goals that would follow. It would be difficult to put a price tag on Marcus Rashford and I sure hope for Manchester United’s sake, that a price tag is out of the question but a captains’ armband is not.