Rashford branded ‘bang average’ despite Man Utd reminder and Barcelona showing

Marcus Rashford provided an assist for Barcelona in their Champions League defeat to Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday night, but the Manchester United loanee was still criticised by Tim Sherwood

Marcus Rashford has been labelled as “bang average” by former Tottenham and Aston Villa boss Tim Sherwood, despite notching up another assist in the Champions League on Wednesday.

Rashford, 27, joined Barcelona on a season-long loan from Manchester United in the summer, after Ruben Amorim made it clear he wasn’t part of his plans. The Catalan giants have the option to make Rashford’s move permanent for a cool £30million in 2026.

After a shaky start at Barcelona, Rashford has found his stride since the September international break. In fact, he’s either scored or assisted in each of his last six matches for Barca.

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The England striker netted his first and second goals for Barca against Newcastle United in the Champions League last month, while he’s set up one goal in five of his last six appearances across all competitions.

On Wednesday, Rashford set up Ferran Torres to score the first goal against Paris Saint-Germain in Europe’s top club competition. However, despite Rashford’s latest contribution to the scoreboard, Sherwood compared him to teammate and Spanish sensation Lamine Yamal.

Speaking on Sky Sports, Sherwood remarked: “He’s (Rashford) done OK. It suits him better when they had more control and they’re getting the ball out to him. But it’s unfair for him because Lamine Yamal gets it on the right-hand side, does a lot of pirouettes, the crowd is up, he has shots at goal, and they drop off him.

“When it goes out to the left to Marcus, he is one dimensional, we know what Marcus is and he’s very effective when he does it. He knocks it, he runs past people and when he doesn’t the crowd think, ‘why don’t you give us the same as the genius on the other side?'”

“It’s harsh on him (Rashford) I know, but it’s a very difficult environment for him to play in. Marcus Rashford will develop if he wants to and get better playing in this Barcelona side. He has to get better.”

Sherwood joked: “At the moment, he looks bang average because the kid on the other side is so good.”

Hansi Flick has been delighted with Rashford’s adjustment to Barcelona, telling Marca: “Everyone could see it in the last games. In Newcastle [scoring two goals] he gained a lot of confidence.

“It’s not always easy, he came from another league. He is adapting well.”

Barca ultimately fell 2-1 to PSG with Senny Mayulu and Goncalo Ramos netting either side of the interval to seal the turnaround for the Champions League titleholders.

Next on the agenda for Barca and Rashford is a journey to Sevilla in La Liga on Sunday.

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