A seventh-minute goal. A 20th-minute assist. A team not in complete control but with a reasonable cushion.
Marcus Rashford seemed to be in the groove for Manchester United in their Europa League clash against Porto on Thursday evening. However, a superb first quarter of the game culminated in a half-time substitution, with Erik ten Hag saying post-game that he wanted to give him a rest before they visited Aston Villa in the Premier League this weekend. The United manager also commented on Rashford’s part in the vulnerabilities his side showed: “Over the left side, definitely, we didn’t defend well tonight — Marcus also played a part in this.”
For Rashford, the night started very promisingly. It was the second time he had managed a goal and an assist in a game this season after failing to do so between April 2023 and United’s 7-0 thrashing of Barnsley in the Carabao Cup last month.
But Rashford’s half followed a pattern familiar to his club in Europe under Ten Hag since the start of last season: a fast start and then a steady loss of effectiveness and defensive solidity, something exacerbated by his manager’s curious off-the-ball setup in Portugal.
So what did and what didn’t Rashford do well at the Estadio do Dragao? Let The Athletic investigate…
Rashford celebrates scoring United’s opening goal against Porto (Octavio Passos/Getty Images)
The good
Rashford’s very first action in the game was close to his own box as Porto pinned United back early, tackling Pepe to get the ball out of play in the third minute.
Four minutes later, he was on the scoresheet with some help from home goalkeeper Diogo Costa. United’s build-up play for this goal deserves credit, as they pulled Porto towards the right side of the pitch before quick passes from Casemiro and Christian Eriksen found Rashford in acres of space on the left.
A dangerous run and a flick between two defenders gave the Englishman the space to shoot and he went towards Costa’s near post, with the goalkeeper failing to get his hand down in time and letting the ball dribble into the net — 1-0 United.
An assist almost followed in the 15th minute. Amad picked up a loose ball and laid it off for Rashford while continuing his run to the outside, taking a player with him and giving Rashford the time to cross. With Rasmus Hojlund lurking, a defender deflected the inviting pass just past Costa’s post.
Five minutes later, Porto paid the price again for giving Rashford time and space on the left. An excellent reverse pass from Eriksen in transition found Rashford, who laid it off for Hojlund to strike. More poor near-post goalkeeping from Costa saw the ball creep in, handing United a 2-0 lead.
Porto continued to play a narrow formation and Rashford almost punished them in transition again in the 24th minute, skipping past a marker and firing a cross into the six-yard box that Costa palmed away, with Amad and Hojlund rushing to the back post.
A great sliding tackle to stop an outlet pass from the defence followed on the half-hour mark, bringing applause from captain Bruno Fernandes and Diogo Dalot.
Rashford also helped United keep the ball between the 40th and 42nd minutes, the calmest period of a frantic first half. He then helped construct one of the moves that Ten Hag would surely like to see more of, with the positions regularly taken up by Eriksen, Dalot, Rashford and Lisandro Martinez to combine on the left: a quick one-two and then a “switch” to find the “free man in the half-spaces”, something Ten Hag seemingly spoke about after the match.
Rashford’s final action of the half was a brilliant run right across Porto’s back line before he saw his shot blocked with Amad and Fernandes in better positions to shoot. Both let their frustrations be known after Casemiro sent the rebound into the stands.
The not-so-good
Sandwiched between these highlights were the lapses that United fans often see from Rashford when he isn’t attacking with the ball at his feet. Against Porto, he needed to help United reduce the impact of right-back Joao Mario, who has been one of the hosts’ creative outlets since arriving in 2020.
Joao Mario, however, repeatedly got away from Rashford. A first warning sign that Porto might target the right flank came from an 18th-minute throw-in. Joao Mario, who took the throw-in, ran past Rashford with ease and created a numerical disadvantage. As United scrambled back, he passed the ball to midfielder Stephen Eustaquio, who should have been followed by Rashford given United’s curious defensive shape. Rashford doesn’t and Eustaquio’s cross under virtually no pressure was cleared at the far post.
It seemed like an innocuous moment, but what followed showed that it was a premonition.
A second warning arrived a few minutes later, with the Primeira Liga side drawing United to one side before hitting them on the other. The defending team’s wingers are crucial to counter this tactic, but as Porto pass to the left, Rashford is mostly stationary and fails to cover the space Joao Mario finds himself in. The left-back then cuts inside before floating a cross that Matthijs de Ligt deflects behind.
This was followed shortly after by a goal that was kickstarted by United losing the ball near their own box. As Dalot races to close down Nico Gonzalez, Rashford is tasked with tracking Joao Mario, who noticeably starts the move positioned behind him and runs past him yet again. Joao Mario has space to deliver a measured cross into the box and the move ends with Pepe converting Andre Onana’s parry from Noussair Mazraoui’s header towards his own goal.
United’s defensive organisation is also questionable here. Eriksen, Casemiro and Martinez are effectively covering Pepe rather than pressing Joao Mario but still fail to stop Pepe from making it to the far post to score.
Similar issues persisted and led to Porto’s second goal from another Joao Mario cross. In this case, Rashford and Eriksen are both slow to track Gonzalez, with United’s narrow and disorganised back line dropping deep, which allows Porto to win the first ball from Joao Mario’s cross as Rashford fails to watch Gonzalez’s run. This allows the midfielder to lay it back to Joao Mario after drawing in Dalot.
The left-back once again has time to cross and finds Samu Omorodion, who gets behind Martinez and ahead of De Ligt to score.
Porto’s plan to hit United’s left flank was the correct one and a ploy they used in the second half to score their third goal.
Rashford’s replacement, Alejandro Garnacho, worked harder off the ball but contributed little offensively as Porto grew in confidence and defended deep.
All eyes will now be on how Rashford fares in the fixture Ten Hag rested him for. A hostile Villa Park awaits on Sunday.
(Top photo: Diogo Baptista/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
