Marcus Rashford withdraws from England squad

Marcus Rashford, Manchester United’s leading goal scorer this season, withdrew from England duty on Monday after suffering a knock in the FA Cup Quarterfinal victory over Fulham at Old Trafford on Sunday.

Rashford was withdrawn in the 83rd minute, after United had taken the lead against Fulham, and replaced by Fred, who assisted the final goal to Bruno Fernandes. Rashford went down with an injury after a collision with a Fulham player, but appeared able to play on. Once the Reds were on top, Erik ten Hag likely felt more comfortable taking off his in-form forward, but there isn’t much news yet on the extent of Rashford’s injury.

United’s No. 10 has been stellar throughout the 2022/23 campaign. He has 27 goals in all competitions for the club, including 19 goals since returning from World Cup duty with England. He scored three times for the Three Lions in Qatar, but won’t feature in the upcoming UEFA Euro 2024 qualification matches against Italy and Ukraine respectively.

United resume their season on April 2nd at Newcastle United in the Premier League, and immediately go back to a weekend-midweek format for as long as they’re in the Europa League. With an FA Cup Semi-final to work into the schedule as well, United will have two more league fixtures to fit into their schedule before the season ends on May 28.

With the club playing a midweek fixture nearly every week since games restarted, a two week rest should do Rashford well. He’s been a constant in the team, delivering week in and week out, but with how many miles are on his legs this year it’s better to play it safe, even in the case of a minor injury.