Man United forward Marcus Rashford became the youngest player to reach 120 goals for the club. The Reds had two key goals for this second leg with Betis: keep a three-goal advantage and avoid bookings for influential duo Casemiro and Bruno Fernandes, and they accomplished both. United had several chances to put the game out of reach for Betis until a Marcus Rashford goal made it 5-1 on an aggregate and secured their place in the quarter-finals. The bookings were handled professionally by the Brazilian and Portuguese players, who avoided the caution that would have resulted in a ban for the first leg of the quarter-final.
Rashford’s goal was the 120th of his Manchester United career, moving him one place below Andy Cole in 18th place on the club’s all-time scoring record. He will undoubtedly ascend that ranking and go down in club history at the age of 25. He has become the youngest Manchester United player to record 25 goals in European tournaments, and the goal also means Rashford has scored more goals in Spain than any other player in the club’s history.
Facundo Pellistri made his entire debut in the game, marking the debut of another off-production line of talent for Manchester United. The 21-year-old was signed in 2020 but appears to have now found a manager prepared to take a risk on him in Ten Haag. The Uruguayan drew attention on social media, with supporters praising his debut.
“[Pellistri] had some fantastic moves. I’m happy with his performance,” Erik ten Hag said. “I am pleased, but we enjoy difficulties, and we knew Betis had a strong team. We defeated them twice, therefore I believe we performed admirably. The second half was considerably better, despite the opponent’s vigor having faded after the goal. We were considerably better on the ball, and all of the guys performed admirably. We have not only 11 players but also a squad. There were no red cards or injuries. We have depth, but not quite that much!”
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