Rashford fires Manchester United into Europa League semi-finals

It was Marcus Rashford goal in  the extra time that sent Manchester United to the Europa League semi-finals at the expense of Anderlecht.

The first leg ended 1-1 in Belgium, but magnificent Henrikh Mkhitaryan put Manchester United ahead on the night and in the tie against a resilient opponent with a beautiful low drive ten minutes into the game.



But it was 19-year-old Rashford that finished the job to send Manchester United into the semi final when he swept home a lovely shot to cap a 3-2 aggregate win.

Read: Manchester United takes the lead again against Anderlecht

Athough, tonight victory came with a price for United as they lose Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Marcos Rojo to injuries.

Jose Mourinho, Manchester United manager, says the early prognosis of the injuries to the striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic and defender Marcos Rojo is "fairly negative"

Manchester United should have won the game before the end of normal time, they created chance after chance after chance and eventually they put one away with the help of the young English player. Marcus Rashford is surely a superstar player, there is no doubt about that. It was a deserved win for the Red Devils.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic landed awkwardly during the last action of the second half extra time, this made his knee jerked and hyper-extended backwards.

This injury might just mark the end of the season for him. It will be a surprise if Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Marcos Rojo plays again this season. The injuries looked very nasty both of them.

Michael Carrick, Manchester United captain, when speaking to BT Sport:

"We did not start well because we did not capitalise on the goal. We created a few chances and didn't take them again - we thought it might be one of those nights. But we're through - that's what you have to do."

When he was asked about prioritising the Premier League or the Europa League as they aim for Champions League qualification he said:

"People are saying 'what do we prioritise'? We've got to fire on all fronts. We have got a duty to do that. There is great belief in the squad, a great atmosphere and we hope to carry it on.

Speaking about injuries to Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Marcos Rojo Carrick said:

"It is disappointing. Hopefully it is not too serious because they are two big players for us."

Marcus Rashford , the Manchester United match-winner, when speaking to BT Sport said:


"All you can do is keep trying to create chances, that's what we kept doing and we pinned them back.

"We had a lot of chances and could have scored but sometimes games go like that. We got one in the end."

When he was questioned on missing a couple of good chances before scoring the winner Rashford said:

"You just have to keep going and hope you get another chance. We've done it the hard way but none of that matters now."