Making amends in the best way possible.
There are very different interpretations of what bravery can mean on the football pitch.
To some, it’s characterised by the traditional ‘blood and thunder’ approach where players clatter into tackles, put their bodies on the line and give every last drop of blood, sweat and tears for their team.
Granted, that’s a nice way of looking at things and there are times when this is essentail, but isn’t this to be expected from every professional?
In the third minute of England’s qualifier vs Slovakia, Marcus Rashford tried to play out from the back and he got caught. Stanislav Lobotka blocked Rashford’s attempted nutmeg and the played a neat one-two with Adam Neme before finishing calmly past Joe Hart.
It was a bad mistake and put England under pressure.
At half-time, the ITV punditry team of Lee Dixon and Ian Wright did criticise the roles that Joe Hart and Kyle Walker had in the goal, but plenty of people felt that the Manchester United man was the main guilty party.
Would Rashford be happy to accept this role as the scapegoat? Would he ‘go hiding’ after Slovakia’s opener?
If anyone asked these questions, they really haven’t been following his career.
The Manchester United striker is still only a teenager, but he has already made a name for himself by doing the exact opposite.
Rashford doesn’t hide, he’s brave enough to keep trusting those prodigious talents that saw him earn a reputation for consistently scoring on his debut, or first appearance in a new competition.
It’s often said that the sign of a great player is how they react to making a mistake.
Are they brave enough to still want the ball? Are they looking to hide on the pitch? What’s their temperament like?
Well, after crossing for Eric Dier’s equaliser and scoring the winner to all but secure England’s spot in the World Cup, there’s no denying that Marcus Rashford is a great player.
Against Slovakia, he showed that he’s got another facet to his game that not many people have seen.
Shows Rashford mental strength that he has overcome early mistake to set up on and score another tonight
— Mark Ogden (@MarkOgden_) September 4, 2017
Underrated quality about Rashford is he doesn't go into hiding. Always wants to get on the ball, regardless of how it's going for him.
— Samuel Luckhurst (@samuelluckhurst) September 4, 2017
And that's why Rashford deserves to start…..made a mistake earlier, but assist for Dier and now superb finish. 2-1 #ENGSVK
— Henry Winter (@henrywinter) September 4, 2017
#eng 2-1 #Slovakia Rashford – England's best player tonight despite his early mistake – fires home from outside the box.
— James Olley (@JamesOlley) September 4, 2017
Very impressive from Rashford, not least in not allowing the error to anyway affect him.
— Miguel Delaney (@MiguelDelaney) September 4, 2017
How many 19 year olds would crumble after making a mistake so early in a game, not Marcus Rashford. Absolute gem.
— Sam (@SamRedDevil) September 4, 2017
https://twitter.com/UnitedStandMUFC/status/904796864670826498
