Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag described Marcus Rashford as "unstoppable when he is in this mood" after the England forward continued his fine run of goalscoring form to help his side ease to a 3-0 victory at Nottingham Forest in the League Cup semi-finals first leg.
Rashford opened the scoring in the sixth minute with a superb solo goal to take his tally to 10 in as many games since returning from the World Cup, and to 18 for the season across all competitions. His fifth goal in the League Cup put the 25-year-old at the top of the competition's scorers list.
Wout Weghorst's first United goal just before the break and Bruno Fernandes' late strike then put United firmly in control of the tie ahead of next Wednesday's reverse fixture at Old Trafford.
"Once again, he is actually unstoppable when he is in this mood, when he is in this spirit, in this focus," Ten Hag said of Rashford. "But [he can] keep going when he keeps this focus. I know football. Football form is a thin line so don't drop off. We all know he can stay there but also the team can work for him and we can bring him in such positions that he can score such goals."
Ten Hag was also pleased to see Weghorst get off the mark for United following his loan move earlier this month from Burnley. The Dutch striker, who scored two late goals for the Netherlands to force extra time and penalties against Argentina in the World Cup quarter-finals, had spent the first half of the season on loan at Turkish side Besiktas.
"I know this is what he is capable of. He has a really good goalscoring record but I think we created some more, really good chances," Ten Hag said. "Also, I think on the right side there was a good action from Antony and he was on the rebound. It was a real striker's goal and therefore we got it.
Forest v Man United player ratings
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NOTTINGHAM FOREST RATINGS: Wayne Hennessey – 5 Caught unaware by Rashford’s fizzing left-footer inside the near post. Exposed again when Antony burst through, but blocked superbly. Might question his role in the second after a tame parry to Weghorst, but was unsighted for Fernandes’s clincher. Action Images -
Serge Aurier – 4 Went AWOL for Rashford’s early opener, setting the tone for a first half of positional indiscipline. Rediscovered his composure in the second half and slung in a decent cross for Scarpa which Wan-Bissaka blocked. Slipped back into bad habits in the final moments and was dispossessed on the edge of his own box. AFP -
Joe Worrall – 5 The skipper enjoyed an early let-off when Fernandes failed to punish his indecision in the box and was soon left for dead by Rashford for the game’s first goal, but he recovered with a solid performance under heavy pressure at times. AFP -
Scott McKenna – 6 Enjoyed a physical battle with Weghorst but the Dutchman was quickest to react when it counted and drilled in the killer second goal on the stroke of half-time. Bailed out his team-mates more than once with last-ditch interceptions. Getty -
Renan Lodi – 5 Match-winner at Old Trafford for Atletico Madrid in last season’s Champions League, but had an altogether harder this time around. Found compatriot Antony in lively form and struggled to contain him. Substituted 17 minutes from time. PA -
Gustavo Scarpa – 7 The debutant showed impressive wide deliveries in both open play and from set-pieces. Tested De Gea with a stinging volley from long-range and showed enough flashes of class to quickly endear himself to the City Ground faithful. PA -
Remo Freuler – 4 Failed to provide adequate cover for Rashford’s opener and didn’t seem overly comfortable with Forest’s rejigged midfield diamond. Struggled to impose himself on the game and was too often bypassed by United’s forward play. Getty -
Danilo – 6 Occupied a deep midfield role on his first Forest start and soon grew into it. Began the move for Surridge’s disallowed goal with a fine through-ball to Gibbs-White and was heavily involved in the first period. Tired after the break and made way just before the hour. PA -
Morgan Gibbs-White – 7 Forest’s liveliest creative threat. Teed up Surridge well for the striker’s disallowed goal and buzzed around Casemiro all evening. Almost halved the arrears on the hour but arrowed his left-footed effort narrowly over the bar. His departure through injury hailed the end of the hosts’ meaningful threat. PA -
Brennan Johnson – 6 Fed on scraps in the opening exchanges and shifted to a wider position to step up his involvement. Showed devastating pace to outstrip Wan-Bissaka in a first-half counter-attack, but wastefully shot at De Gea instead of squaring to Danilo. Moments later embarrassed two opponents before firing waywardly over. A calmer head could have changed the tie. Reuters -
Sam Surridge – 5 Thought he’d equalised with a well-taken finish midway through the first period, only to see the goal disallowed for offside. Otherwise battled gamely and put in a shift, enjoying more joy against Lindelof than Martinez before his departure midway through the second half. Getty -
SUBS: Jack Colback (Danilo, 58) – 5 Brought in to steady the hosts’ midfield as United threatened to put the tie to bed in the second half. Managed to do so initially, but unable to prevent Fernandes essentially ending it late on. Action Images -
Jesse Lingard (Gustavo Scarpa, 64) - 5 Needed less than 10 minutes to conjure a half-chance against his former side, but headed comfortably wide. Low-key when Forest needed some late magic. Action Images -
Emmanuel Dennis (Sam Surridge, 64) - 4 Flung on to bring raw pace and power to the Forest attack, but was let down by his control when attempting to speed away from Lindelof late on. PA -
Neco Williams (Lodi, 73) – 6 Put in an inviting cross for Lingard and drew a foul from Pellistri with a surge down the left. Lewis O’Brien (Gibbs-White, 73) – N/A Struggled to have an impact. Getty -
MANCHESTER UNITED RATINGS: David de Gea - 7 Punched a corner away on 25 and punched the Scarpa shot which followed. Forest created chances, but couldn’t put the ball past the keeper. Reuters -
Aaron Wan-Bissaka - 7 Tested for pace by Johnson and Forest’s counters in an end-to-end first half, but came through the test against a side who had not lost at home since September. PA -
Victor Lindelof - 7 Tough few minutes in the middle of the first half when Forest thought they had scored and then he missed a cross as Forest pressured. Blocked a 62nd minute Scarpa shot. Steadier in the second and played well. Getty -
Lisandro Martinez - 8 Convincing on a challenging night where Johnson’s pace tested the entire United defence. Beautiful ball forward on 59 towards Fernandes. Touched the ball 118 times – no other player had more than 89 touches. Blocked, intercepted, tackled. Reuters -
Tyrell Malacia - 7 Lively, tough tackling. Rewarded with a kiss on the head by his compatriot Weghorst after the second goal. Action Images -
Christian Eriksen - 6 Moved the ball through midfield beautifully. Beaten for pace by Johnson. Hit the crossbar on 53 in front of the 29,000 sell-out crowd. AFP -
Casemiro - 7 Struggled with Gibbs-White, who stopped him dictating play and beat him with quick turns. He got brushed off the ball too, which was surprising to see. Then he drove forward in the lead up to the second. Caught out again on the hour by Gibbs-White, yet he was still a significant influence. Getty -
Bruno Fernandes - 7 Put an early ball towards the Forest goal in a bright start. Gave the ball away three times in key positions in the first half. Crossed, shot wide, tussled and scored the third after 88, with fans singing ‘Wembley!’ Third goal in four games. AFP -
Antony - 7 Cut past Lodi and curled a shot wide on eight minutes. Did the same five minutes later. Almost got on the end of a fantastic move after 33, but it was a poor finish. A half volley was saved before Weghorst’s goal. Opportunities. Action Images -
Marcus Rashford - 8 Picked up the ball well inside his own half after six minutes, slalomed past three Forest players and shot past Hennessey for his 10th goal in ten matches, his best ever run of form. Off early, his job done. Scored in every round of the competition. Action Images -
Wout Weghorst - 8 Positioned himself well as a reference point. Showed for the ball, didn’t give it away all night, linked players into the game. Belting finish after 44 for his first United goal, a difficult follow up into the roof of the net. Encouraging night for the big man. PA -
SUBS: Alejandro Garnacho - 6 On for Rashford after 56. Conceded a free-kick on the edge of the area on 83. Not a huge impact. PA -
Fred - 6 Replaced Eriksen on 71. Energetic. And brought the game’s six Brazilians together for a chat at the end of a match where United are clear favourites to reach Wembley. Reuters -
Facundo Pellistri - N/A On for Antony on 71. He’d come off the bench and set up Rashford in the previous round. Beautiful cross to Weghorst on 77. Got the first booking of the game. AFP -
Elanga - NA On for Weghorst after 84 and set up the third for Fernandes. AFP
"He's a striker, they live for goals. And he is doing a great job in the games he has played so far. In all the games, good pressing, [and as a] good target. But of course, finally they want to score. And finally, they are there to be present in the box and to finish."
United's advantage after the first leg means they appear destined for a place in the final, with Newcastle United – 1-0 first-leg winners at Southampton – their likely opponents. But despite their position of strength, Ten Hag insisted it is no time for the players to get complacent.
"Yes, we have to play one game," he said. "We have to do the same, we have to invest, we have to prepare, we have to make a good gameplan and the players have to be focused."
Forest manager Steve Cooper admitted his side face an uphill task to turn around the tie.
“We’re really disappointed with the scoreline. The last thing you want to do is go to Old Trafford with the result we got," he said.
“I won’t lose sight of the fact we did alright at times in the first half and steadied the ship in the second half. But the naivety and the timing around the goals has made it incredibly tough for the second leg."
