Eagle-eyed fans have claimed that Manchester United star Marcus Rashford wasn’t the first player to do his trademark celebration, despite becoming synonymous with it this season.
Rashford has seen a remarkable turnaround in form at United and played an instrumental role in Erik ten Hag’s Premier League top-four challenge.
The 25-year-old in-form United forward has scored an impressive 17 times and registered six assists for the Red Devils in the current campaign.
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Rashford’s rejuvenated form also secured him a place in the England squad for the 2022 World Cup, with the Three Lions star scoring three times in Qatar.
The England international has been linked with Paris Saint-Germain in recent weeks, with United keen to extend Rashford’s contract beyond 2024.
Rashford, who has scored in each of his last nine matches for United, has frequently been spotted pointing his index finger to his temple after finding the back of the net.
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Arsenal starlet Bukayo Saka was seen doing the same celebration as Rashford after he scored in the Gunners’ sensational 3-2 win over United on the weekend.
Newcastle star Joelinton and Bayern Munich star Joshua Kimmich have also appeared to take a page out of Rashford’s playbook with their celebrations.
However, one fan took to Twitter and claimed Rashford was not the first to do the celebration after pointing to Aurelien Tchouameni at the World Cup.
The 22-year-old Real Madrid starlet had his finger pointed to his temple after he opened the scoring for France against England in the quarter-finals in Qatar.
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“So it’s not Rashy’s celebration, TBF [to be fair],” one fan said.
Someone else commented: “Wasn’t Tchouameni doing this before Rashford anyway?”
“Don’t let them forget,” a third added.
While one Twitter user tweeted: “Got a point there, TBH [to be honest].”
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A fifth fan wrote: “Tchouameni actually has been doing this celebration ahead of Rashford. Rashford is doing it more regularly because he is scoring regularly. He is not the first to do it.”
It remains unclear what the true meaning behind Rashford’s celebration is, irrespective of who did the celebration first.
However, it is believed that the pointing to his temple might be linked with his turnaround in mental health after overcoming his struggles in the 2021-22 season.
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Speaking to Sky Sports last October, Rashford said: “I was struggling at times with more mental things.
“It wasn’t really my own performance but other things off the pitch. That’s the biggest difference from last season.
“Too often last season, I wasn’t in the right headspace for games. I wasn’t surprised by some of the stuff that was happening.”
Featured Image Credit: AlamyTopics: Marcus Rashford, Manchester United, Premier League, England, Football