What did United learn about Juventus?

Jose Mourinho was proud of his team’s efforts in the 1-0 defeat at Old Trafford a fortnight ago and felt his side deserved a point. Indeed United were unlucky to see Paul Pogba hit the post against his former club with a second-half effort.

Rashford believes it’s a benefit to play the Italian giants again so soon after that game and feels the players learnt a lot from those 90 minutes, which will stand them in good stead at the Allianz Stadium. 

“The home game was a game with a lot of lessons. It was a game where we could have lost 2-0, drew the game 1-1 or won the game 2-1,” Marcus explained in an interview with us. “I think in that game we left it a bit too late, but we learnt from it and we go again.

“There have been times when we’ve got it right and there will be times when we get it right again and times when we don’t, but we have to understand that it doesn’t always go to plan, and we have to be ready for that.

“I think it’s good to have the two games quite close together because the first game is quite fresh in a lot of people’s minds. I wouldn’t say it’s easier to prepare for it, but you feel ready to face it.”

The Reds will once again be reunited with club legend Cristiano Ronaldo - a player Rashford looks up to hugely for the way in which he has not only sustained his high performance level, but has continued to build on it.

“The thing that is a massive eye-opener for me now is I remember when he first came his talent was arguably one of the biggest talents that we’ve seen at United for a long time; to have him and Wayne [Rooney] in the same team was amazing when you look back. But the way he’s sustained his career and even improved year or year is just amazing,” said the 21-year-old.

“People don’t do that at his age, people are usually heading towards the end of their career and their level starts going down a little bit, but he’s just gone up and up and up.

“For me there is no bigger inspiration in football. I could speak for a lot of young players and United fans that watched the team when he was here and the majority of us have followed him as he’s moved on in his career and that’s what special about United. Once you play for this club you become part of this family even if you move on. There is always something that remains in your heart, you could see that when he returned [to Old Trafford] from our fans.

“When you play against a player like that you have to respect his qualities but at the same time you have to play your game and you can’t show fear to that type of player.”

Reading this in our app? If not, you might miss some exclusive features not found on ManUtd.com. Download the Official App here.