He scored two in two this international break
Gareth Southgate believes Marcus Rashford can emulate Cristiano Ronaldo and become a talisman for the the national team. Rashford scored two goals in two games during the international break, opening the scoring in a 2-1 defeat to Spain and scoring the only goal in a 1-0 win over Switzerland.
The Manchester United forward was given two starts due to Raheem Sterling withdrawing from the squad with a back problem, and took full advantage of his chance to impress Southgate, who is full of praise for the player.
"He is a special talent," Southgate said.
"We have to remember that Harry Kane at that age had hardly played anywhere near the matches for Spurs," he added, emphasising that Rashford is yet to reach his full potential and will continue to improve.
"You can even compare it to some of those other top players who have broken through," Southgate continued.
The England boss went on to compare Rashford to Cristiano Ronaldo, who began his career as a tricky winger before moving into a more central role.
"Some of the step-overs and things Ronaldo was doing at that age [were remarkable], but Ronaldo wasn’t converting them into the same number of goals."
"So we have got to give Marcus time to develop.
"He has still played a lot of football, although maybe not the continuous starts, and I’m really pleased for him that he leaves here full of confidence."
"You can even compare it to some of those other top players who have broken through," Southgate continued.
The England boss went on to compare Rashford to Cristiano Ronaldo, who began his career as a tricky winger before moving into a more central role.
"Some of the step-overs and things Ronaldo was doing at that age [were remarkable], but Ronaldo wasn’t converting them into the same number of goals."
"So we have got to give Marcus time to develop.
"He has still played a lot of football, although maybe not the continuous starts, and I’m really pleased for him that he leaves here full of confidence."
