He Scores When He Wants .. - The Marcus Rashford Thread

This is true. Several was an exaggeration, but I would have expected Pogba or Blind to take it over him. Glad that it worked out!

@jeff070 I appreciate that but I think you may have the wrong poster. In my experience gaining muscle mass definitely helped out my game, but I am by no means an expert in exercise science or kinesiology. I just get injured a lot and hang around a lot of physical therapists

 

Bronaldo used to know a lot about the subject.

 

Strength and speed are not mutually exclusive. I wouldn't want Rashford to focus on gaining muscle mass over the summer but I wouldn't discourage it either. What's important is his psychological development and he's doing fantastically in that regard.

Every top footballer finds their own ideal comfort level in terms of muscle mass and I have no doubt his coaches and physical trainers will develop Marcus to where he needs to be over the next few seasons.

 

You want an all round player and that is weakness now where you can develop and make him complete without deterring the other strengths.

 

We need to send him to work out with Saha for the summer.

 

I think we are confusing two different things. A player can be built like a brick wall and still possess pace, i.e. The V3000, Ronaldo, Shaqiri. Agility on the other hand I classify as quick feet, dropping the shoulders and beating a man, etc. Can't think of an example at the moment of a player in this category that has both... apart from Ronaldo in his prime.

 

He is still a boy. When he gets his man size, he will be better equipped to deal with the more physical players. However, we don't need him going out of his way to add mass. He might, might get a higher top end speed at the sacrifice of acceleration or agility and he is top percentile in pace, agility and acceleration, no point possibly risking that to make him stronger when he will never be a Valencia build.

 

Big guys who are agile? Adriano, Berbatov, Saha, Anelka. Most agile big guys don't have jets tho

 

You just named 2 players there who had jets. Certainly a tier above most players.

 

Maybe not a physical specimen, but would you guys classify Torres as a physical player? Used to have some fun battles with Vidic. Quite pacey, too.

 

Torres had a good top end speed, but he had poor acceleration. Rashford has excellent acceleration.

 

First striker to come into mind when you see Rashford, lets not Saha will injure himself with the thought of training.

 

It's a shame, he was a shadow of his former self by the time I started watching more regularly around 2006.

 

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Well aware, I was trying to, but I'm struggling.

 

i think soccer is way behind on physical training. almost all soccer players would be considered very tiny in the nba and nfl - leagues where guards and wide receivers, respectively, typically add about 20 pounds in their first few years while actually gaining pace.

then again, most nba and nfl stars have their own personal strength coach following them everywehere in addition to the team's trainers. i don't think soccer players are there yet.

i actually think that rashford has a good frame to add some muscle. nothing crazy but it would certainly help him develop his hold up game (which is non-existent at this point).

 

Those sports don't have the aerobic requirements of soccer though. The players get much more frequent and longer breaks in cardio exertion than soccer, allowing them to carry the addiitonal muscle mass though.

 

The biggest difference is stamina imo, to be able to run continuously for 45 mins without much break compared to 4-5 mins is a big deal.

 

Not only that, it's the change in pace. Running 10k plus in a game is nothing like running 10k in a race. You can't build a rhythm as you're constantly changing speeds and changing direction, often while having to use your upper body to fight off opponents.

Aerobic stamina is hugely important.

 

I was a pretty stoic defender, was always good sized but the physicality impacts your body a lot even at my decent size. NBA has gone totally the other way with physicality for one.

 

Cannot find the infographic but my only issue with Rashford's performance against Celta was his lack of touches inside the box. He had lots on either flank and cutting inside but few inside the box itself.

 

That's a poor comparison. It's like saying marathon training is way behind sprint training because marathoners don't have as much muscle mass.

 

i think it's quite a leap to suggest that the added muscle mass of properly trained nba and nfl athletes would hinder their stamina in any way. did it have any effect on peak cristiano's stamina? i'd say no.

 

Looking at their playing patterns, I think it does play a big factor. Ronaldo has always trained to be a winger first and foremost than a muscle machine.