“In the past, I myself struggled with psychological problems, my own mental health,” the MU striker shared in a conversation with Rio Ferdinand. “Psychological problems are not really related to performance on the pitch, but mainly problems outside of life.”
After missing a penalty in the EURO 2020 final, causing England to bitterly see Italy’s coronation, Rashford received many criticisms from fans. In the 2021/22 season, MU’s striker also did not play well. He admitted that he had psychological problems at that time. “There were so many times last season that my head wasn’t really focused on the games.”
Last month, The Athletic revealed that the MU striker’s celebration was inspired by a group of close friends. They think that Rashford should create a unique kind of celebration to remove criticism off the pitch. The gesture of pointing to the head when celebrating also shows that Rashford is completely focused on football.
Rashford’s celebration was later imitated by many other famous sports colleagues and athletes. For example, Joshua Kimmich (Bayern Munich), Joelinton (Newcastle) or Bukayo Saka (Arsenal) are the same players celebrating as Rashford. After winning the Australian Open 2023, Novak Djokovic also pointed to his head to celebrate like the MU striker. On his personal page afterwards, Rashford also expressed his excitement when his celebration became a new trend.
After the 2022 World Cup, Rashford is the best scorer in the top 5 European leagues, with 16 goals in 17 matches. In the Premier League alone, Rashford has got 14 goals, equal to Ivan Toney of Brentford, ranked 3rd in the list of “Top scorers” after Harry Kane (17 goals) and Erling Haaland (26 goals).
