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Luke Shaw challenged Marcus Rashford to match his “unplayable” display against Wales throughout the rest of England’s World Cup campaign.
Rashford scored England’s opener and their final goal in a 3-0 win over their British rivals at Ahmad bin Ali Stadium on Tuesday.
The victory sent England into the last 16 as Group B winners, and they will now face Senegal for a place in the quarter-finals.
Rashford, one of four new faces introduced by Gareth Southgate for the game, curled in a wonderful free-kick to break the deadlock early in the second half, before he doubled his tally with a low shot after a mazy run, with Wales goalkeeper Danny Ward allowing the ball through his legs.
After becoming the first Manchester United player to score three goals at a World Cup since Bobby Charlton in 1966, when England won the trophy, Rashford must now replicate that level of performance time and time again, according to his club-mate Shaw.
When asked by Stats Perform what he thought of Rashford’s display, Shaw replied: “He’s so good, the talent he’s got, he can be unplayable.
“I think he needs to deliver that every single game he plays. He’s got the quality that can make a difference, he’s an unbelievable player and one that can make the difference for us.
“Hopefully he can keep those standards high and keep doing it.”
Rashford, who finished with six shots, only one fewer than the entire Wales team managed combined, had scored eight times in 19 appearances for United this season heading into the World Cup, and Shaw has full faith the 25-year-old will keep up his form.
“Very confident. I see it day in, day out – what he’s doing, how he’s training,” Shaw added. “He took his chance, I think it was his time to start and for me he took his chance.
“He needs to keep the standards high now, because he’s a really important player.”
Phil Foden was a star of the show along with Rashford.
Having faced criticism from some quarters for not bringing the Manchester City youngster on against the United States last week, Southgate started Foden in place of Bukayo Saka.
While Foden took a while to get going, he clicked through the gears as the first half wore on and was on the end of a brilliant Harry Kane delivery to make it 2-0 just 98 seconds after Rashford’s opener.
“Not just the ones that started today, you look at the bench and the quality we have, we have World Class players who if they’re not starting can come on and change a game,” Shaw said when asked if Foden could be decisive in pushing England deep into the tournament.
“Phil didn’t get a chance against the USA but he came in and was the wonderful player we all know, getting on the ball, making things happen, scoring a very important goal at a crucial time and that’s what we want from all of them. We need them to be like that.”
Rashford revealed after the match that he had recently suffered the loss of a friend, and Shaw – whose grandmother passed away shortly before the World Cup – explained the unique unity of the England camp had been crucial in helping him overcome the loss.
“One million per cent,” Shaw said. “The togetherness is not something I’ve witnessed in a team before.
“Everyone is so close together, we get on so well and push each other every day to get better and keep the standards high. It brings everyone closer together.”
