Paul Scholes played his 718th and final game for Manchester United in May 2013. It was also Alex Ferguson’s final match as United manager, a 5-5 draw at West Bromwich Albion. Only Ryan Giggs and Bobby Charlton have played more United games than Scholes. All of them came through United’s youth system.
Three years after Scholes retired, another youth graduate from Greater Manchester made his United debut. Marcus Rashford, 18, benefitted from injuries to other players when he started in a 5-1 Europa League victory over Midtjylland. Rashford is only 22 but he has played 201 United games, scoring 64 goals.
Scholes and Rashford, sadly, never lined up together - but they would have loved to.
“It would have been a dream to play with someone like that,” said Rashford. “The biggest thing for me is range of passing. Probably the closest thing to that was when Wazza [Wayne Rooney] was playing a bit deeper and it was just so enjoyable to play as a number nine in those games when he was in that position.”
“Similar with Carra [Michael Carrick] as well. As soon as they get the ball they look forward and want to play forward, not only to feet but in behind a lot of the time. As a forward that’s all you want. As long as someone is seeing the passes and trying to make them, that’s what you thrive on.”
Scholes watched Rashford when he was attracting attention in United’s reserves.
“Sometimes I would go to games and just watch him, and not really watch where the ball was,” he told the new edition of United’s podcast.
“I’d look for his movement - is he clever enough to have that link with a midfield player? I think he has that.
“I was really excited when he first got into the team, a little bit luckily at first - I think there was an injury to someone. But ever since he has shown the talent he has got as a centre-forward or wide on the left.
“I always remember seeing him as a kid and I thought his intelligence and movement was as a centre-forward. He looked like an out-and-out number nine, but now when you see him in games, he seems to enjoy it more from the left-hand side." he said.
Scholes also explains what he would have looked for had he ever played alongside Rashford.
“Same as any midfield player looks for, a player who can come short but more importantly a player with pace, like Marcus has, speed and movement.
“You don’t need to look at these players - sometimes, you don’t need to talk to them it’s just sometimes just a little look, you are on the ball, time and space, you see space over a centre-half. I know I can just dink it over a centre-half or over a full-back and he’s got the speed to fly past someone and the composure to score a goal as well.”
And that’s why Scholes is not the only one eagerly awaiting the resumption of football and a fit again Marcus Rashford.
