The World Cup pressure is ramping up as the Round of 32 fixtures throw up thrilling results, and Man Utd’s connection is right in the middle of it all.
The marquee game from Man Utd’s perspective on Day 21 was England vs DR Congo, where Marcus Rashford took on Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Axel Tuanzebe.
It was a frustrating night out for Rashford, made worse as Anthony Gordon came on for him and assisted both England goals.
Here’s how Man Utd players, past and present, fared on another riveting day of action.
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Marcus Rashford – 4/10 (W vs DR Congo)
Rashford earned a start on the back of a good performance against Panama in the last group stage game.
However, he was wasteful against Congo and rarely found any joy against Wan-Bissaka. He had a shot cleared off the line, and his 1v1 forays were easily neutralised by Congo’s low block.
It’s fair to say that he’s lost his starting place to Gordon after just one game.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka – 7.5/10 (L vs England)
Congo might have lost to England, but it was through no fault of Wan-Bissaka, who was absolutely a defensive rock.
Gordon found more joy against him than Rashford did, but he was a key part of the backline, which repelled England with minimal fuss until the goal.
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He even showed quality footwork on the ball and acted as a final-third threat to show a new area of his game.
Axel Tuanzebe – 7.5/10 (L vs England)
Much like Wan-Bissaka, Axel Tuanzebe was also masterful, and the only thing that didn’t go in his favour on the day was the result.
Harry Kane scored a brace, but Tuanzebe had the English attack on lock until that point with his recovery pace, positional intelligence, and combativeness.
Romelu Lukaku – 8/10 (W vs Senegal)
After a horrific World Cup so far, Romelu Lukaku showed against Senegal that you can’t replace experience.
He came off the bench at half-time and powered Belgium’s immense second-half comeback to power them through to the next stage.
His goal in the 86th minute set the ball rolling, before Tielemans equalised three minutes later, eventually winning it in extra time.
Belgium live to fight another day, and Lukaku rolled back the years to make it happen.
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