Rashford's remarkable rise continues with debut hat-trick

United sensation Marcus Rashford scored a hat-trick on his England Under 21 debut as Gareth Southgate's side thrashed Norway in their European Championship qualifier.

Rashford, who does not turn 19 until October, has now scored on his debuts in the Premier League, Europa League and Manchester derby as well as England's senior side and now the Under 21s. 

He fired England ahead from 18 yards on the half hour mark before he added a deflected second on 66 and completed his treble having earned and then converted a penalty six minutes later. 

After omitting him from his first senior squad before the recent World Cup qualifiers, new England boss Sam Allardyce said Rashford's inclusion in Southgate's side "will be invaluable for us later down the line". 

The former Sunderland and Bolton manager also suggested that he would not select players who were not playing regularly with their clubs. 

Rashford has played only 19 minutes in the Premier League for us so far this season as he came off the bench to score the injury time winner at Hull last time out.

Southgate said before the game that he had been impressed with the teenager's mentality and would have been even more pleased by his performance. 

"What we saw tonight was exactly what we've seen from Marcus all week, not just in the quality but in the way he's gone about work.
"He joined this group from the senior England squad with real humilty and maturity, you hope that's the case with a young player but it's never a given.
"So he's impressed all of us with the way he's fitted in" said the young Lions delighted coach. 

In front of the watching Allardyce, Rashford did not take his demotion to heart and made a perfect start to his second string career with a powerful run and well-taken finish after half an hour.

He netted his second with a strike that took a slight deflection that put his side 4-0 up and made it five soon afterwards with a composed spot-kick following a handball offence.

Next year, he would be eligible to play at both the Under-20 World Cup in South Korea, where England have already sealed their place as one of the 24 countries, and the European Under-21 Championships in Poland. 

"It was the first penalty I've scored since I turned professional, it's always a test of your nerve so it has to be my favourite goal so far.
"It was a good debut to have and I thought Norway made it hard for us despite the scoreline, it's always an honour to play for England at any level so I am very happy" said Rashford. 

Also on target at Colchester were Chelsea youngsters Nathaniel Chalobah, Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Lewis Baker who rounded off the scoring to complete the rout. 

Mkhitaryan injury doubt ahead of Manchester derby

Henrikh Mkhitaryan is a doubt for the Manchester derby after the Armenian FA confirmed the winger has suffered a thigh injury that looks set to keep him out for around 10 days.

Mkhitaryan picked up the knock in an off-the-ball collison with Marek Suchy during his country's friendly with the Czech Republic on Wednesday and was taken off in the 38th minute as a result.

Test results on the 27-year-old's thigh injury were "not encouraging" and he now faces a race against time to be fit for one of our biggest games of the season against Pep Guardiola's Manchester City side on September 10.

He is set to return to Carrington where he will be further assessed by United's medical staff ahead of next Saturday's encounter at Old Trafford. 

A statement released by the Armenian FA read:

"As reported, senior national team captain Henrikh Mkhitaryan received an injury against Czech Republic and as a result was unable to continue the match.
"Mkhitaryan has had a medical examination and unfortunately the results are not encouraging.
"Mkhitaryan was found to have an injury in the lower third of the left thigh muscle, such injuries usually require a week to ten days to heal which means that Mkhitaryan will miss the Denmark-Armenia match on September 4."

The attacking midfielder, who signed from Dortmund in the summer for £22 million, has only made three substitute appearances for the Reds but was thought to be in contention for a starting place in the derby after impressing off the bench at Hull.
His likely absence, however, means that Juan Mata will probably retain his right-wing spot 
as Jose assesses his options ahead of next Saturday's showdown.

The boss will be forced into at least one alteration to his line-up as Marouane Fellaini is out with a back injury and Antonio Valencia could also miss the match as he does not return from Ecuador duty until Friday night.

Regarding the international break, Mourinho said:

"We keep eight outfield players and the goalkeeper (Sam Johnstone) for training, we are going to lose the others and we don't know the way they train, the way they recover, the life they are going to have with their countries.
"It is always a difficult situation but we know it is like this when we have these players- and I would love all of the players to go because it would mean that everyone is being selected for their national teams and that is always a great privilege."

Ins and outs: Reds transfer window round-up

Manchester United were busy in the summer transfer window of 2016 as Jose Mourinho shaped the squad for his first season in charge of the Reds.

The new boss made four stellar signings with Eric Bailly coming in to reinforce the defence followed by Zlatan Ibrahimovic on a free from PSG to bolster the attack on July 1.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan completed his move from Borussia Dortmund on a four-year deal for an undisclosed fee before the club announced the blockbuster deal to buy back Paul Pogba from Juventus on 8 August.

On the outgoing front, four players were released by the Reds at the end of last season.

Following a very public falling out with former manager Louis van Gaal, goalkeeper Victor Valdes joined newly promoted Middlesbrough after the Teesiders beat off a whole host of clubs to secure the Spaniard's signature.

Youth team keeper George Dorrington signed for Championship side Huddersfield Town following a trial period, while Oliver Rathbone linked up with League One Rochdale on a free. 

The fourth player released, Nick Powell, also moved into the Championship when he re-joined Wigan on a four year deal.

Three other departures on 12 July- Tyler Reid to Swansea, Ashley Fletcher to West Ham United and Joe Rothwell to Oxford United.
A day later, Irish centre-back Jimmy Dunne linked up with Burnley and youth team keeper Oliver Byrne's move to Championship Cardiff was confirmed.

A first loan move was agreed when Uruguayan full-back Guillermo Varela accepted a season-long switch to Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga.
Adnan Januzaj agreed a temporary move to Sunderland with Reds team-mates Donald Love and Paddy McNair also joining David Moyes' Black Cats side on a £5.5 million permanent deal.

James Wilson also left on loan- this time to Derby County for the season- and Cameron Borthwick-Jackson quickly followed a couple of days later with a move to Molineux.

Fellow Academy graduate Tyler Blackett left for Reading and former United legend Jaap Stam and Andreas Pereira agreed to go to Granada on loan before Will Keane departed for Hull City on a permanent deal.

Deadline day proved to be relatively quiet, but Dean Henderson joined League Two side Grimsby on loan until January and fellow stopper Joel Castro Pereira made a move to Portuguese outfit Belenenses for the rest of the season.

Under 21 captain James Weir followed team-mate Keane in signing a three-year contract at Mike Phelan's newly promoted Hull City. 

United Ins and Outs- Summer 2016

IN: Eric Bailly (£25 million, Villarreal), Henrikh Mkhitaryan  (undisclosed, Borussia Dortmund), Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Free agent, PSG), Paul Pogba (£89 million, Juventus)
OUT: Tyler Blackett (undisclosed, Reading), Cameron Borthwick-Jackson (loan, Wolves), Oliver Byrne (free agent, Cardiff City), George Dorrington (Released, Huddersfield),  Jimmy Dunne (free agent, Burnley), Ashley Fletcher (free agent, West Ham United), Dean Henderson (loan, Grimsby), Will Keane (£1.2 million, Hull City), Adnan Januzaj (loan, Sunderland), Donald Love, Paddy McNair (£5.5 million double deal, Sunderland), Andreas Pereira (loan, Granada), Joel Castro Pereira (loan, Belenenses), Nick Powell (released, Wigan Athletic), Oliver Rathbone (released, Swansea City), Tyler Reid (£1 million, Swansea), Joe Rothwell (undisclosed, Oxford), Victor Valdes (released, Middlesbrough), Guillermo Varela (loan, Eintracht Frankfurt), James Weir (undisclosed, Hull City), James Wilson (loan, Derby)

Excitement builds ahead of 172nd Manchester derby

There may be ten days to go and an international break sandwiched in between but excitement and hype is already building ahead of the 172nd Manchester derby on September 10th.

Although still early in the season and far from the title decider the press love to describe the fixture as, this Old Trafford meeting goes way beyond mere local bragging rights in the most eagerly anticipated encounter for years. 

Subplots and dramas wherever you look, not only is there a bitter and storied rivalry on the pitch and in the stands, but there's also no love lost in the two dugouts as Messrs Mourinho and Guardiola resume their long-running feud.

The two men were often locked at loggerheads during their time in La Liga, often embroiled in a war of words and tempestuous exchanges both verbally and- on the odd occasion- even physically. 

Pep Guardiola was announced as City's new boss in February and from the moment Jose was confirmed as Louis Van Gaal's successor in May, the anticipation of this already high-octane occasion ratcheted up a notch. 

Indeed, it is the relationship between the two bosses that looks set to dominate the headlines in the build-up to the game almost as much as the match itself.

You can almost guarantee that, for the first time since taking charge, we will see mind games from Mr Mourinho.
How Guardiola chooses to respond to his rival's jibes will be equally as interesting.

Sergio Aguero looks set to sit this one out as he faces the prospect of a three-match ban for elbowing West Ham's Winston Reid.

Regardless of the Argentine's absence, City have quality throughout their side and will pose the stiffest test so far for Jose's new-look United side.
Raheem Sterling looks revitalised under Guardiola, Kevin De Bruyne has started the season in fine form and new signing Nolito has also caught the eye in the early stages of the campaign with fellow new boy John Stones also impressing. 

Of course, one thing is already for certain: both sides have had 100% starts to the season so one- or possibly both- of these perfect starts will go at Old Trafford.

The local landscape has ebbed and flowed intriguingly over the last few years, with United having the upper hand in the fixtures under Van Gaal (Played 4, Won 2, Drawn 1, Lost 1) but City dominant in the ill-fated David Moyes season (moving on, quickly)...

In Sir Alex's last season, the spoils were split with a win apiece but we had the last laugh after romping to the title by 11 points. 

The first all-Manchester meeting of the season comes after four games barely a month into the new season but, with the eyes of the world on this football mad city, it will be unmissable.

Bring it on!!

Modern football waits for no man as Chris Smalling is finding out

If you could have asked any United fan in early June which players would be first on Jose Mourinho's team sheet David de Gea would be one and Anthony Martial another.

At a time before key signings had been made, most would then have probably plumped for Chris Smalling next ahead of individuals like Wayne Rooney, despite his role as club captain.

The former Fulham centre-back has developed into a real defensive leader over the last two seasons and was often wearing the armband himself by the end of Louis van Gaal's tenure. 

But, three months on, the debate is now whether Smalling even gets on the pitch at all.

Following a late return to pre-season training as a result of Euro 2016, Smalling then picked up an injury that ruled him out of contention to make an impression on Mourinho.

He was also suspended for the first game of the Premier League season which led the new boss to make plans that didn't include him.

What we perhaps had not envisaged was just how well Eric Bailly and Daley Blind would play together as United's new first choice centre-back pairing.

Who would have been an automatic name on the team sheet in early June?

Bailly wasn't at the club, and even when he did arrive there were reservations about whether he was ready to be thrown straight in, while Blind was predicted to be an early Mourinho casualty.

Even if he were to stay, most felt the Dutchman would be a squad player at best. 

But in Smalling's misfortune, the other two have actually significantly prospered.

Bailly looks every bit a top class Premier League defender.

He's quick, strong, powerful, composed both with the ball and without it, commanding in the air, able to read the game and identify danger, all with a distinct class rather than the rash and raw talent he was initially billed as.

Alongside the Ivorian, Blind has continued to defy the doubters.

His physical profile doesn't typically match Mourinho's preferred defender, but he's one of the most intelligent players there is and that makes him invaluable.

People thought LVG was mad for persisting with Blind as a centre-back and the player was still described as 'makeshift' and 'stop gap' even at the very end of last season and into summer despite playing virtually every game in all competitions at the heart of a defence that conceded the joint fewest goals in the League.

Now that it's Mourinho playing Blind in the middle it is deemed as a master-stroke - investigating why the exact same decision made by two different managers has been perceived so differently is debate best left for another day.

Smalling is the unfortunate loser at the moment.

Time waits for no man in modern football and he'll have to be patient for his chance to come back around, although it's hard to see when that will be with things going so well in front of him.

Pressure pays off as persistent United find a way

Jose Mourinho proved he really does have the Midas touch as his United side snatched a dramatic late victory at newly promoted Hull City.

With the Reds needing a fresh foothold back into the game he made the call and introduced Marcus Rashford with 20 minutes to play.

There were calls for Mourinho to take off a subdued and out of sorts Wayne Rooney but just when United looked set to drop their first two points of the season, it was the Old Trafford captain who created the winner.

Mourinho can do no wrong so far and this was certainly the biggest test of his tenure to date.

The Reds had not exactly had their own way completely in the previous matches against Bournemouth and Southampton with both the south coast sides starting well early on.

Mike Phelan's Hull asked far more questions of Mourinho's new-look team.

They were snappy in the tackle, looked a threat from set-pieces and on occasions even managed to play around Paul Pogba in midfield.

In the last few seasons, opponents would have made hay as chins hit chests.

But this isn't a United side who'll sag any more when the going gets tough- with characters like Pogba and Ibrahimovic that's unlikely to happen.

Whereas last term you ripped your hair out wondering if an opposition keeper might actually get tested, Hull's Eldin Jakupovic couldn't enjoy the same comfort.

You had to wonder if the adrenaline from a visit of United, plus a 100% Premier League start for Hull would wear off at some point.

But they didn't flag and what they lacked in numbers they more than made up for in spirit and dogged determination. 

Henrikh Mkhitaryan's darting and penetrative runs began to cause Hull problems and forced both David Meyler and Tom Huddlestone into fouls on the silky winger in desperate last-ditch attempts to stop him. 

United wouldn't give up and you have to be grateful for one of the old traits that Mourinho looks like he might have revived.

The Reds kept pressing as Hull had to descend  into lashing balls into no-man's land to relieve the pressure with United hoping they might switch off for one critical moment.

When four minutes was held up on the fourth official's board, a groan went up from the home supporters who knew this was a different United side from the one that toiled so much last term.

Everyone knew what was coming and it did. 

Belief and mentality can take the Reds far

Jose Mourinho says he doesn't care about being top of the table in August.

He wants the team to be there in May. 

The United boss has been clear about this since taking over the job - he is here to achieve success and it is impossible to under-estimate the impact such a positive attitude can have.

It spreads throughout the club and there is a new-found feeling within the team that the Reds can go far this season.

When watching Mourinho's Chelsea win games through sheer desire and bloody mindedness at times it was psychologically damaging when the Reds were in direct competition for trophies.

That same feeling will have travelled across the country among supporters harbouring similar hopes this term when Marcus Rashford profited from Wayne Rooney's excellent work in injury time on Humberside. 

Somewhat fittingly, a rainstorm engulfed the KCOM Stadium as the hosts had to withstand what was at times a tropical cyclone from the Reds.
There seemed to be a real calm about United - with the clock ticking, there was no panic, just wave after wave of attacks as the visitors camped in the Hull City half.

Eldin Jakupovic hadn't really been extended but there was a purpose about our play, even early on with Zlatan exuding positivity in everything he did.

The same could be said about Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Marcus Rashford- two wonderful and match-winning substitutions designed by Mourinho to get the three points.

When Paul Pogba curled just wide from a promising position in the closing stages, it seemed like United would have to settle for a point and probably go into the derby in City's slipstream- presuming Pep's mob beat West Ham on Sunday.

Yet, I still believed, so did the travelling fans and- most importantly- the visiting players.

As long as there was still time left on the clock, United could win it.

Rooney's magic created the opening and, when Rashford scored, the euphoric joy among all of a Red persuasion was obvious.
Hull's players slumped to the turf in utter dejection after such a valiant effort but in truth they were battered into submission in the second half.

Evidently, the boss felt the same- that he always believed the goal would come.

"I know when (note the syntax- when not if) we score late people will speak about a bit of luck but this was not lucky, we know we shall lose or draw matches but the mentality has to be to win and today we showed that- it was deserved.
"We grabbed a late goal because we showed belief and we will win again."

I sense that United fans have faith, belief and confidence in the team- and the boss- again.
It is still very early days but the signs are there and, on a testing night in Humberside, this feels like a huge step back towards the days of the United of old.
Such victories feel like they are worth so much more than just the three points.... they are psychologically devastating.

We approach the international break counting down the days to the Manchester derby on 10 September.
The atmosphere at Old Trafford will be electric and the focus intense.

But the belief in the Red corner is that we can deliver.