Over the years, many footballing greats have called Old Trafford their home. Manchester United fans have witnessed some of the best-of-the-best.
Perhaps the biggest football icon to grace the hallowed Theatre of Dreams turf in the post-Sir Alex Ferguson era was Zlatan Ibrahimovic.
Although the iconic Swede was only in Manchester for eighteen months, his presence and aura was there for all to see. Not many can captivate an audience like Zlatan and it was superb to have him in that dressing room as a role model.
Well, despite Ibrahimovic leaving two years ago now, his influence is still being felt. While speaking on the most recent UTDPodcast, boyhood United fan Marcus Rashford has hailed the 38-year-old as a vital player when it comes to helping him grow.
“I played with Zlatan and it was just his mentality was beyond anything I’d ever played with before. He didn’t care what anyone would say or what anyone was saying about him. In terms of mentality, he was key to my development.” Rashford told the UTDPodcast.
Mentally, there aren’t many tougher than Ibrahimovic. He’s a born winner who’ll do anything to ensure his team are on top. It seems as though Rashford has never forgotten that trait that he picked up from his former strike partner…
It’s encouraging that even though Rashford has been in the first-team for five years now, he’s still learning and growing as an individual. Many would rest on their laurels and think there’s nothing more that can be done, though the Englishman is still keen to grow and improve.
Although his style is totally different to Ibrahimovic’s, Rashford can still pick out little tweaks that he can make to his game to constantly grow and learn and having that mindset is 100% required to make it at the highest level.
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