Despite scoring a brace against Wales, Man United’s Marcus Rashford is not guaranteed to start for England against Senegal on Sunday.
That is the view of British agent Haydn Dodge, who is unconvinced that Rashford has done enough to force his way into Gareth Southgate’s World Cup starting 11 plans, despite being top of the World Cup’s scoring charts.
There is no denying it – Rashford was his country’s standout player on Tuesday during their final Group B game against Wales.
Rashford scored a brilliant free-kick before doubling his tally less than 20 minutes later. The United winger’s contributions helped guide the Three Lions to an emphatic 3-0 victory and set up a Round of Last 16 knockout tie against Senegal on the weekend, but Dodge expects the 25-year-old to be dropped back to the bench.
“Marcus Rashford made all the headlines for his performance against Wales,” Dodge said in an exclusive interview.
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“He did play really well, especially in the second half, and it’s nice to see him in good form because he hasn’t been at his best for the last couple of seasons.
“The fact he did so well against Wales is all because Gareth Southgate made a minor tweak and swapped Rashford and Foden and stopped them from being inverted wingers and allowed them to operate on their more natural sides. It worked well against Wales, but put it this way – if Southgate doesn’t keep this same momentum going, he’s going to come back from Qatar with his P45.
“As for Rashford and whether or not his performance against Wales will be enough to nail down a starting spot against Senegal on Sunday, I’m not so sure.”
Going on to speculate the role Southgate will instruct Rashford to play, Dodge said: “He could be a really impactful substitute at around the 60 – 70 minute mark.
“I’m just not sure he’s guaranteed a starting spot. I can see Southgate going back to his usual front three of Raheem Sterling, Bukayo Saka and Kane.”
Do you agree with Dodge’s prediction? – Which players do you think should lead England’s attack against Senegal? – Let us know in the comments.