Marcus Rashford came off the bench to score a clinical hat-trick as Manchester United continued their recent momentum by taking apart RB Leipzig in the Champions League.
England international Rashford came on just after the hour mark and netted three goals in 18 minutes, first running clear to calmly slot in, then smashing in a terrific second, before drilling home a third in stoppage time.
Teenage forward Mason Greenwood scored his first goal in the competition, latching onto Paul Pogba’s defence-splitting pass before drilling a precise, low finish into the far corner.
Greenwood produced another thumping effort straight at Peter Gulasci, while the visiting goalkeeper also kept out Anthony Martial’s poked effort.
But when Martial was tripped in the box with three minutes to go, he converted the penalty in a thumping victory for the Red Devils.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side backed up their excellent win at Paris St-Germain in their opening game by collecting another impressive three points to extend their unbeaten run to four games.
United’s backline had a comfortable night, David de Gea keeping out efforts from Christopher Nkunku and Ibrahima Konate.
In the Group H’s other game, last year’s runners-up Paris St-Germain picked up their first points with a 2-0 win at Istanbul Basaksehir.
Rashford can do no wrong
United had said before the game that they were “bemused” by the government’s decision not to allow fans into Old Trafford despite making the stadium a socially-distanced venue for 23,500 supporters.
And with United playing their first Champions League game at home since losing to Barcelona in the quarter-final in April 2019, it was a shame the supporters missed out on their side’s best performance of the campaign.
Solskjaer’s side were up against the current Bundesliga leaders and a team that reached the semi-finals last term, but made the German side look ordinary with a superb, all-round performance.
Man of the moment Rashford again made an impact, netting with all three of his shots on target.
Honoured with an MBE earlier in the month and continuing his fight against the government over free meals for school children off the pitch, Rashford showcased his prowess on it with a first treble in Europe’s elite club competition.
His first was initially ruled out by the assistant referee for offside, but replays showed he had timed his run to perfection from behind the halfway line, bursting clear from Bruno Fernandes’ raking pass and opening up his body to before slotting home.
The second came with a run to the edge of the box before powering his finish into the corner, while he completed his hat-trick from close range.
More to follow.
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RB Leipzig
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Squad number1Player nameGulácsi
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Squad number6Player nameKonaté
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Squad number5Player nameUpamecano
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Squad number23Player nameHalstenberg
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Squad number44Player nameKampl
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Squad number39Player nameHenrichs
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Squad number25Player nameOlmo
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Squad number18Player nameNkunku
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Squad number3Player nameAngelino
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Squad number9Player namePoulsen
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Squad number10Player nameForsberg
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Squad number7Player nameSabitzer
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Squad number19Player nameSørloth
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Squad number21Player nameKluivert
Line-ups
Man Utd
- 1de Gea
- 29Wan-BissakaSubstituted forTuanzebeat 81′minutes
- 2Lindelöf
- 5Maguire
- 23Shaw
- 31MaticBooked at 34minsSubstituted forMcTominayat 63′minutes
- 17Fred
- 6PogbaSubstituted forCavaniat 81′minutes
- 34van de BeekSubstituted forBruno Fernandesat 68′minutes
- 9Martial
- 11GreenwoodSubstituted forRashfordat 63′minutes
Substitutes
- 7Cavani
- 8Mata
- 10Rashford
- 18Bruno Fernandes
- 21James
- 24Fosu-Mensah
- 25Ighalo
- 26Henderson
- 33Williams
- 38Tuanzebe
- 39McTominay
- 43Mengi
RB Leipzig
- 1Gulácsi
- 6Konaté
- 5Upamecano
- 23Halstenberg
- 44KamplSubstituted forKluivertat 76′minutesBooked at 77mins
- 39HenrichsBooked at 46minsSubstituted forSabitzerat 63′minutesBooked at 86mins
- 25Olmo
- 18NkunkuSubstituted forSørlothat 65′minutes
- 3Angelino
- 9Poulsen
- 10Forsberg
Substitutes
- 4Orban
- 7Sabitzer
- 11Hwang Hee-Chan
- 13Tschauner
- 14Adams
- 19Sørloth
- 20Samardzic
- 21Kluivert
- 33MartÃnez
- 41Borkowski
- 45Martel
- 47Wosz
Live Text
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Match ends, Manchester United 5, RB Leipzig 0.
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Second Half ends, Manchester United 5, RB Leipzig 0.
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Goal! Manchester United 5, RB Leipzig 0. Marcus Rashford (Manchester United) right footed shot from the centre of the box to the bottom right corner. Assisted by Anthony Martial.
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Dani Olmo (RB Leipzig) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
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Foul by Luke Shaw (Manchester United).
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Foul by Yussuf Poulsen (RB Leipzig).
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Scott McTominay (Manchester United) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Dani Olmo (RB Leipzig) wins a free kick on the right wing.
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Foul by Fred (Manchester United).
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Offside, Manchester United. Bruno Fernandes tries a through ball, but Edinson Cavani is caught offside.
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Goal! Manchester United 4, RB Leipzig 0. Anthony Martial (Manchester United) converts the penalty with a right footed shot to the bottom left corner.
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Marcel Sabitzer (RB Leipzig) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
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Penalty conceded by Marcel Sabitzer (RB Leipzig) after a foul in the penalty area.
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Penalty Manchester United. Anthony Martial draws a foul in the penalty area.
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Attempt blocked. Marcus Rashford (Manchester United) left footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by Edinson Cavani with a headed pass.
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Offside, RB Leipzig. Marcel Halstenberg tries a through ball, but Angeliño is caught offside.
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Substitution, Manchester United. Edinson Cavani replaces Paul Pogba.
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Substitution, Manchester United. Axel Tuanzebe replaces Aaron Wan-Bissaka.
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Attempt missed. Alexander Sørloth (RB Leipzig) header from the centre of the box is just a bit too high. Assisted by Emil Forsberg with a cross following a corner.
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Corner, RB Leipzig. Conceded by Luke Shaw.
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