28 October 2023 , 12:08
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Kyle Walker is adamant Marcus Rashford remains a lethal opponent Manchester City should fear despite the striker's poor form.
The two will meet on Sunday when Manchester United welcome their local rivals to Old Trafford for the first Manchester derby of the season. Rashford goes into the game in disappointing form, having scored just one goal so far this season while looking well below the standards he set last campaign.
Across all competitions, Rashford netted 30 goals last time out and few were more important than the winner against City at home during United's dramatic 2-1 victory in January. While Rashford is currently far from those kind of performances, Walker insists his England colleague cannot be underestimated.
"I think Marcus has shown over the years that he’s the sort of player who can create problems for any side if they don’t match him," the right-back explained. "He’s been important for both United and England since he was a teenager because of the threat he offers to any team he’s in.
"He’s got a lot of different qualities and we know he can be dangerous at the weekend." Rashford's winner against City last term came in controversial fashion, with City players adamant the forward was in an offside position in the build-up.
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Asked if Pep Guardiola's men are out for revenge upon their return to Old Trafford, Walker quashed any talk that was the case. “I don’t think we think like that,” said the right-back. “Last season is done, we lost at Old Trafford and went on to win the treble.
"Ultimately that’s what matters. Of course this game means a lot but it’s part of a bigger picture and, OK we lost last season and the luck didn’t go in our favour, but we bounced back from that and did what we did.
"We want to win the game because of what it means and because ultimately it will help us in trying to win the Premier League again. We don’t need to think beyond that. We’ve had some great games against them in recent years and our focus is on giving the fans something to enjoy again on Sunday."
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Marcus Rashford has been praised by Man City right-back Kyle WalkerRashford will be aiming to ensure Walker and his City team-mates make the short trip back to the blue half of Manchester with no points to show for their efforts. The 25-year-old may even be spurred on by his manager's pre-match comments, where Erik ten Hag admitted his side haven't been prolific enough.
"The co-operation has to click and we showed this week some examples where we have many overload positions and going to the opponents’ goal and we don’t net or even hit the target," the Dutchman explained. "We should do better. I’m convinced that with the qualities of our players, they will go and score more goals."