Marcus Rashford marked his return to the England squad with a goal for Manchester United in their thrilling Carabao Cup win over Aston Villa.
Just hours after being named in Gareth Southgate’s 26-man World Cup squad, Rashford equalized for the Red Devils with a close-range finish after capitalizing on a Tyrone Mings slip.
After an uninspiring first half, the competition came to life two minutes into the second half with Ollie Watkins putting Unai Emery’s men ahead.
The hosts fought back instantly through Anthony Martial’s finish before Villa regained the lead when Diogo Dalot diverted the ball into his own net.
Rashford then brought Man United level with his goal midway through the first half.
“It was like [Rashford] tools downed under Ralf Rangnick… I see a different Rashford now,” Micky Gray said in a commentary for talkSPORT.
“Maybe the one we all saw come on stage!”
Erik ten Hag’s men then turned things around with a deflected effort from Bruno Fernandes before Scott McTominay sealed the 4-2 win with a superb pass from Alejandro Garnacho, described as ‘Beckham-esque’ by Gray .
And it was a good night for Rashford, who got a double dose of good news on Thursday as he prepares to make his first national team appearance since the Euro 2020 final.
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