Many were surprised at how confidently Marcus Rashford seized his first team opportunity in the Europa League game against Midjytlland. They shouldn't have been. Rashford is familiar with unexpected baptisms, having made his debut for United's youth team when he was still at school, called up due to a rash of injuries at academy level. Before that, he'd featured in the AEGON Cup for the Reds when still only fourteen.
He grabbed his opportunities then in the way he's just grabbed his first stab at a place in United's first team: confidently and with both hands. He's a player with explosive pace who, at the age of eighteen, has already shed some of his earlier rawness to show impressive technique and the kind of balance and poise that all fast strikers need.
A genuine Mancunian, Rashford only made his debut for the Under 21s earlier this season so to say his elevation to the first team was premature is an understatement. Had Will Keane not picked up an injury at Shrewsbury on Monday, he would surely have been playing at Blackpool in the Lancashire Senior Cup rather than scoring twice for United in front of the Stretford End.
There are, of course, many more conditionals attached. Had Anthony Martial not declared himself unfit, had James Wilson and Ashley Fletcher not been out on loan...
But then football, like life, is all about taking your chances when they come along. Now comes the next stage for Rashford: dealing with the inevitable over-the-top media reaction while keeping your feet on the ground. Adnan Januzaj, of course, received pretty much the same heightened response from a press that built him up then couldn't wait to knock him back down. For now, though, no one would surely begrudge Marcus Rashford a few moments to bask in the sheer pleasure that comes from having lived out the dream of so many United supporters.
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