GiveMeSport
·21 February 2023
Marcus Rashford: How Benni McCarthy has helped transform Man Utd star

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·21 February 2023
Benni McCarthy has been praised for Marcus Rashford's incredible transformation at Manchester United.
Rashford is currently in the form of his life after scoring another two goals against Leicester on Sunday.
This season, he's scored 24 goals in 36 matches in all competitions and has notched 10 in his last 10 Premier League games.
Some are even suggesting Rashford is the best player in world football on current form.
While he clearly deserves a huge amount of credit himself, many are pointing towards Man Utd coach, McCarthy.
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The South African was brought in by Erik ten Hag in the summer to work closely with the strikers at Old Trafford.
During his playing career, McCarthy is known by England fans for his spells at Blackburn and West Ham. At Rovers, he scored 52 goals in 140 games and finished second to Didier Drogba for the Premier League's Golden Boot in 2006/07.
Years earlier, he had helped Jose Mourinho's Porto win the Champions League.
He was incredible in the air and once scoring a stunning brace against Man Utd in the Champions League
And now, an inside report from the Daily Mail explains the role he's played.
Ten Hag wanted a striker's coach and failed to bring in Robin van Persie from Feyenoord. McCarthy's agent suggested a meeting with Ten Hag and the club's football director John Murtough.
McCarthy's case was that he knew the Dutch philosophy having spent time at Ajax, was familiar with the Premier League and had a history of improving players.
He was asked to take a few sessions with the club's Under 23s which were overlooked by Ten Hag and his coaches. They were impressed and offered him a full-time role with the club on their summer tour. It's believed he didn't even ask about the salary before accepting the job.
After being appointed, McCarthy said: "I want to help these young players, push them, change their mindset and really try to make the difference to United this season," he said after returning last summer.
McCarthy has held one-on-one sessions with Rashford to help turn him into a more 'confident and direct striker' and has also worked extensively on his heading ability.
The former Blackburn striker speaks four languages - English, Dutch, Spanish and Portuguese - which helps him communicate clearly with the whole United squad.
Jadon Sancho has also asked to work one-on-one with McCarthy following his return to first-team action.
"He's definitely helped me a lot," Rashford said in November. "To have attack-minded coaches is good for us. He's always there speaking to us about these things."
Explaining the decision to bring in McCarthy, Ten Hag said: "In our coaching staff, we had a lot of defenders and midfield players. I wanted to find a good balance. He is offensive-minded as he is a former striker, and that is also a really specific task in the team.
"I never played there, so I'm lucky to have someone on my staff who did. Football is about scoring. You have a goalkeeping specialist, but you also have offensive specialists and, in particular, we have a specific scoring coach."