Ten Hag Praises Rashford After Manchester United's 2-0 Win: 'He Was A Threat'

Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag has heaped praise on Marcus Rashford after his side defeated Burnley 2-0 in their League Cup meeting Wednesday.

Ten Hag said Rashford was a "threat" to Burnley's defensive line as the English forward netted their second goal after Christian Eriksen's 27th-minute opening goal at Old Trafford.

With the strike against Burnley, Rashford took his goals tally to nine in the 2022-23 campaign. The 25-year-old forward has also provided three assists in 20 matches across all competitions.

"I think he was a threat for the defending line of Burnley. He moved so often behind the defending line and they are the most difficult situations to get the ball there," Ten Hag told reporters after his side's win.

Five Manchester United players from Ten Hag's starting line-up Wednesday, including Rashford, were part of the recently-concluded Qatar World Cup. The Dutch boss said Manchester United were "hungry" to secure wins and also praised his boys' effort that led to Eriksen's goal in the first half.

"But with the passing capabilities of players like Eriksen, Casemiro, and Bruno, we have the players that can get the ball there. They are quite hungry. It was a good team goal, but it was good to see the way we finished [the move] with Bruno [Fernandes] and then, on the far side, Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Christian Eriksen for the goal. Yeah [it was] a really great goal," added Ten Hag.

The fixture against Burnley was Manchester United's first game after the international break. The 2-0 win has sealed the Red Devils' place in the quarter-final of the League Cup.

Before the end of this year, Manchester United will play two Premier League matches. The upcoming game is a home clash with Nottingham Forest on Dec. 27. The Old Trafford side will then travel to West Midlands to lock horns with Wolves at Molineux Stadium on Dec. 31.

Ten Hag's side was in fifth place with 26 points from 14 games when they went into the World Cup break. While Manchester United are three points away from the top four, with a game in hand, they are 11 points behind leaders Arsenal.