Manchester United must give Marcus Rashford what Cristiano Ronaldo wanted

When things are going well for you as a striker, everything you touch finds the back of the net. Marcus Rashford is in the form of his life and on such a positive run that even his viciously deflected effort against Newcastle was awarded to him when it was clearly an own goal.

It felt like 'just another' strike from the United marksman to add to his collection this season, but it was a goal that symbolised a lot as he took his tally to a landmark figure.

Rashford has now hit 25 goals in all competitions for United this season, a figure that is not only significant because it is his record tally for a single campaign, but because it is more than Cristiano Ronaldo notched throughout all of last season.

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It was as recently as last April that interim manager Ralf Rangnick referenced an overreliance on Ronaldo as he led the way for goals at the club.

"Yes, right now, we very much rely on Cristiano, he also showed a good performance when Chelsea were in possession. There has to be a focus on bringing in a couple of new strikers for sure."

Last season, the Portuguese striker outscored everyone else, with Bruno Fernandes the only other player to reach double figures with ten goals in all competitions. Rashford netted just five.

Few people saw such a transformation coming, and even Rashford's most devoted fan would admit there have always been concerns about his consistency in front of goal.

Yet, here we are a year later, with the 25-year-old the poster boy for Erik ten Hag's side, a man who relishes the responsibility of always finding the back of the net for his team.

It is the same pressure and privilege that Ronaldo had last season. So often, it felt that if