Gareth Southgate hails Manchester United duo Marcus Rashford and Harry Maguire
England manager Gareth Southgate was full of praise for Manchester United duo Marcus Rashford and Harry Maguire after the Three Lions secured their spot at Euro 2024 with a 3-1 win over Italy at Wembley on Tuesday night.
Both players were handed starts in the match, with Rashford getting on the scoresheet. There have been question marks over Southgate’s continued faith in Maguire given his lack of playing time at United, but the England boss labelled his performance ‘outstanding’.
Southgate said: ‘Ideally, we would have everyone playing regularly, but you can see Kalvin [Phillips] and Harry [Maguire] were both outstanding tonight. They are both important for us. They are up against really good players at their clubs.’
Rashford has struggled for goals at United this season, but Southgate was full of praise for the forward’s performance against Italy. He said: ‘Our front players worked unbelievably for the team. Marcus Rashford, I don’t know how much ground he covered today! When your front players are doing that sort of work, it’s a brilliant sign for the team.’
Speaking more generally about England’s win, Southgate said: ‘We’re so hungry, so eager to learn, so together. And you saw that in the performance tonight. We said before that mentality was the main thing. The performance was relentless tonight.’
The win over Italy was a huge boost for England and for Manchester United’s two stars, who will be hoping to continue their impressive form when they return to club action.
Southgate’s faith in Maguire and Rashford has been rewarded with a place at Euro 2024, and the England boss will be hoping that his two stars can continue to shine in the coming months.