After a scarce appearance in England’s Euros campaign, Marcus Rashford must start up front according to Shearer
England legend Alan Shearer has written in his blog for Coral that now is the time for Marcus Rashford to be “let loose for England”, and insists Saturday’s World Cup qualifier will be the better for it.
18-year-old striker Rashford has scored on his Manchester United, Premier League, England Under-21 and England senior team debuts.
Rashford found the back of the net against Australia inside the game’s third minute at the end of last season but was on the bench for most of England’s disastrous Euro 2016 campaign, much to the frustration of fans.
He was then dropped down to Gareth Southgate’s Under-21s, for whom he fired a hat-trick in last month’s 6-1 drubbing of Norway.
Now that Southgate is calling the shots for the senior squad, the Manchester United striker has rejoined the top level of international duties.
And former England centre-forward Shearer says Saturday’s qualifier against Malta in front of a Wembley crowd is the time for him to become central to the squad.
Former Newcastle player Alan Shearer as he arrives for the Premier League Legends of Football charity event
Shearer wrote in his blog for bookmakers Coral: “Gareth [Southgate] should definitely start with Marcus Rashford up front.
“Now is the time for Rashford to be let loose for England. We need to take the reins off him and get him out there to see what he can do. There are only so many times you can keep a young player like him on the bench.
“Whenever he’s been asked the question at one of the biggest clubs in the world, Manchester United, he has always come up with the answer. Now is the time for him to be unleashed on the international scene.”
Malta were defeated 5-1 by Scotland last time out while England secured a tight 1-0 win against Slovakia.
But Shearer, who netted a brace on his England Under-21 debut in 1990, feels this should be a far more comfortable win for the Lions.
He added: “It really is the best match to get off to a good start. I’d expect us to win the game by four or five goals.
“When I’ve played in these games against smaller nations, you want to get off to a good start and score the first goal in the first 20 minutes.”
The game will kick off at 5.00pm before the team head to their second fixture on Tuesday against Slovenia.
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