Where would Manchester United and Erik ten Hag be this season without Marcus Rashford.
Time and again this term a weary United have struggled to get over the line, lacking the strength in depth, especially in the strike department, to turn tight games into crucial victories.
At Elland Road on Sunday, a weary United had nothing left in the tank coming into the final 10 minutes of the tightly-contested, feisty derby clash with Leeds United.
A win could have taken them, temporarily at least, second in the table, but a goal did not look like it was coming. One chance, however, is all Rashford 2.0 needs. A bullet header, out of nowhere, set his team on their way to yet another victory that without the resurgent England hitman, would not be possible.
Alejandro Garnacho put the game to bed to show there is at least some depth to the United changing room, but Rashford, once more, had done all the damage.
February is unrelenting for Manchester United. Ten games between February 1 and March 1 is a brutal schedule for any sporting team, but with players still yet to have had a break since the World Cup, the schedule has left United running on fumes.
When Jadon Sancho’s equaliser completed the comeback in the reverse fixture against Leeds only four days previous, United teams of old would have been odds on to have found a late winner, by hook or by crook.
But, for the first time in their recent revival, United are showing signs of weariness. Without several key players through injury or suspension, Erik ten Hag’s team just did not have another goal in them.
Early on at Elland Road, there was only one team in the contest. The visitors just could not get close enough to their opponents, and when they did, they were met with the full force of the tackle, backed by a vociferous crowd baying for blood.
Crysencio Summerville should have scored early on but blazed over, with it taking United 20 minutes to even muster a first attack, Fernandes dragging an effort well wide.
The atmosphere stayed red-hot, but the action on the pitch was far more tepid. It took until the end of the opening period for more presentable openings to be created, with Summerville again going close, denied by David De Gea, before Bruno Fernandes found himself clean through on goal in first-half stoppage time.
Manchester United 2 Leeds 2 - player ratings
The Portuguese took his time to pick his spot, arrowed a strike for the bottom corner, but was denied by the foot of Illan Meslier in the Leeds goal.
Ten Hag shuffled his pack after the break, bringing Lisandro Martinez on in defence, a player so key to instigating United attacks from deep, and withdrew Sancho, whose first start since October produced very few memorable moments.
The energy was simply not there, however. Diogo Dalot thundered a long-range effort against crossbar from distance, but with a lack of squad options to refresh things, Ten Hag’s hands were tied, with a crucial Europa League qualifier in Barcelona to come in the week.
The Dutch coach’s paucity of suitable reinforcements was clear for all to see as when Garnacho came on for Sancho midway through the second half, the giant Wout Weghort, hardly renowned for his ingenuity, found himself as a No 10.
As has been the case for much of the season, it fell on one, resurgent local hero to drag United out of a hole.
The cross from Luke Shaw, another United player who has been rejuvenated under Ten Hag, as a central defender or as full-back, was inch perfect on to the head of the England international, who made no mistake with a bullet header.
Last season, when being booed by his own supporters, Rashford was anything but clinical, with his confidence at rock bottom. Now, the lethal marksman, as Ten Hag has transformed the 25-year-old into, only needs one opening to settle crucial contests and earn his side a victory they might not necessarily deserve.
Garnacho responded to his manager’s calls for him to be more clinical with his game-clinching second, but Leeds, like many before him this term, had been slain by United’s one and only game-changer in attack.
Countdown to Zero exhibition will show how disease can be beaten
Countdown to Zero: Defeating Disease, an international multimedia exhibition created by the American Museum of National History in collaboration with The Carter Center, will open in Abu Dhabi a month before Reaching the Last Mile.
Opening on October 15 and running until November 15, the free exhibition opens at The Galleria mall on Al Maryah Island, and has already been seen at the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum in Atlanta, the American Museum of Natural History in New York, and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
Director: Laxman Utekar
Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna
Rating: 1/5
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FA Cup fifth round draw
Sheffield Wednesday v Manchester City
Reading/Cardiff City v Sheffield United
Chelsea v Shrewsbury Town/Liverpool
West Bromwich Albion v Newcastle United/Oxford United
Leicester City v Coventry City/Birmingham City
Northampton Town/Derby County v Manchester United
Southampton/Tottenham Hotspur v Norwich City
Portsmouth v Arsenal
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
Electoral College Victory
Trump has so far secured 295 Electoral College votes, according to the Associated Press, exceeding the 270 needed to win. Only Nevada and Arizona remain to be called, and both swing states are leaning Republican. Trump swept all five remaining swing states, North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, sealing his path to victory and giving him a strong mandate.
Popular Vote Tally
The count is ongoing, but Trump currently leads with nearly 51 per cent of the popular vote to Harris’s 47.6 per cent. Trump has over 72.2 million votes, while Harris trails with approximately 67.4 million.
Britain's travel restrictions
- A negative test 2 days before flying
- Complete passenger locator form
- Book a post-arrival PCR test
- Double-vaccinated must self-isolate
- 11 countries on red list quarantine
Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week
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Company name: baraka
Started: July 2020
Founders: Feras Jalbout and Kunal Taneja
Based: Dubai and Bahrain
Sector: FinTech
Initial investment: $150,000
Current staff: 12
Stage: Pre-seed capital raising of $1 million
Investors: Class 5 Global, FJ Labs, IMO Ventures, The Community Fund, VentureSouq, Fox Ventures, Dr Abdulla Elyas (private investment)
Countries offering golden visas
UK
Innovator Founder Visa is aimed at those who can demonstrate relevant experience in business and sufficient investment funds to set up and scale up a new business in the UK. It offers permanent residence after three years.
Germany
Investing or establishing a business in Germany offers you a residence permit, which eventually leads to citizenship. The investment must meet an economic need and you have to have lived in Germany for five years to become a citizen.
Italy
The scheme is designed for foreign investors committed to making a significant contribution to the economy. Requires a minimum investment of €250,000 which can rise to €2 million.
Switzerland
Residence Programme offers residence to applicants and their families through economic contributions. The applicant must agree to pay an annual lump sum in tax.
Canada
Start-Up Visa Programme allows foreign entrepreneurs the opportunity to create a business in Canada and apply for permanent residence.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Company name: Farmin
Date started: March 2019
Founder: Dr Ali Al Hammadi
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: AgriTech
Initial investment: None to date
Partners/Incubators: UAE Space Agency/Krypto Labs