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Arsenal legend Paul Merson has advised Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to put Marcus Rashford on the bench for Manchester United’s decisive clash against the Gunners on Sunday.
Rashford looted a 16-minute hat-trick as a substitute midweek when he put RB Leipzig to the sword in the Champions League.
The 23-year-old started in the last Premier League game against Chelsea but couldn’t find the net, and Merson believes that returning to a substitute role will bring out the best in the England forward.
He wrote in the Daily Star: “When he [Rashford] he starts out, he doesn’t really score a ton of goals and often finds it difficult.
“But he came in this week against Leipzig and scored a hat-trick in 16 minutes! If you look at when he scores his goals this season, they tell you a story.
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“He scored as a substitute against Luton in the 88th minute in the EFL Cup. He scored in the second half against Brighton.
“He scored in the last minute against Newcastle. He scored with three minutes to go against Paris St-Germain and all his goals against Leipzig came late in the game. His goals come against tired defenders.
“Maybe United should experiment with that.
“Arsenal is going to be a close game. If it’s 0-0 after 60 minutes and Rashford comes in just as the defenders are getting tired, he could have a field day.
Manchester United are looking to chart their way back to the top.
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Ole Gunnar Solskjaer may have missed Jadon Sancho in the summer, but he still made some big moves in the transfer market with Donny van de Beek, Alex Telles and Edinson Cavani arriving.
But their start to the season has been mixed, with a loss at home to Crystal Palace and a 6-1 win by Spurs at one end of the scale, and a tremendous 2-1 win over PSG in Paris in the other.
The question now is whether they can find the right balance.
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“Don’t get me wrong. Marcus Rashford is too good to spend his entire career as a supersub. He’s an England international.
“But I think he needs a break and playing a few games off the bench could actually do him some good in the long run.”
Both teams enter the game after victories in Europe, but United were left blank in a goalless draw against Chelsea in their last outing in the top flight as Arsenal were beaten by Leicester.
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