Marcus Rashford a 'future Man Utd great', says Juan Mata
Tuesday 22 March 2016 07:54, UK
Juan Mata believes Manchester United team-mate Marcus Rashford is "a great player in the making."
The 18-year old striker once again stole the headlines on Sunday, after scoring the decisive goal in United's 1-0 win over rivals Manchester City.
Rashford now has five goals in eight senior appearances, and became the youngest-ever scorer in a Premier League Manchester derby with his latest strike.
Mata, who set up the game's only goal, has hailed the forward as a future star, but stressed he must be given the time to develop.
"Marcus showed again that he is a great player in the making," said the Spaniard. "We all believe in him, although we must remember he's still very young and he's just arrived in the first team."
Rashford's fellow-United academy product Jesse Lingard echoed those sentiments, and revealed he is helping the young striker remain focused.
"He was buzzing, but I was keeping him grounded," joked Lingard. "He is already grounded anyway to be fair and is looking forward to the rest of his career."
United's win moved them just one point behind fourth-placed City in their battle for Champions League qualification for next season.
"It is a massive win and a massive boost going into the international break," added Lingard. "But we have to kick on now and focus on beating Everton.
"It is interesting now but we have to take it game by game, get our recovery, get our rest and go again."
