Even though Manchester United narrowly defeated Aston Villa yesterday, they did so in a game that was far from spectacular.

It took Bruno Fernandes’ goal late in the first half to put the teams apart, and it turned out to be the game-winner because Unai Emery’s team was unable to get an equaliser as the score remained 1-0.

The match was actually overshadowed by yet another dismal afternoon for Marcus Rashford, who has recently lost his mojo despite some fantastic mid-season displays. This is despite the Portuguese maestro continuing his scorching form.

Erik ten Hag is content to use a less effective wide player in that position since he is an improvement over other candidates because the England international, who started up front, still seems to be recovering slowly from his injury.

But as a result, his statistics have plummeted. The wizard, who made £200k per week, once scored ten goals in as many Premier League games. Just two out of his previous eight are left now. Even his part in yesterday’s goal was described as “unorthodox” by writer Laurie Whitwell.

The Red Devils will be happy if they can say that a victory will always come first. However, until he regains his scoring touch, their star player’s decline in form will continue to be a concern.

Against Aston Villa, how did Marcus Rashford perform?

With just over five minutes remaining, the Dutchman actually hooked the speedster, choosing Anthony Martial to finish the game, which was a testimonial to his awful performance.

Though the 25-year-old had only amassed 24 touches and six passes during his time on the pitch, this development was hardly unexpected. Even David De Gea had more touches (29) in the United goal.

Rashford was extraordinarily wasteful with his brief time with the ball, as evidenced by his 67% pass accuracy, one large opportunity lost, and the fact that he went the entire game without scoring despite accumulating 0.46 anticipated goals. According to Sofascore, this amount made up almost a third of the team’s overall 1.19 total.

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The forward’s misery was made worse by the fact that he dropped possession 13 times and lost 75% of the eight duels he engaged in. The 5 foot 11 finisher would give up the ball after every 1.8 touches as a result.

This loss of form is not immediately concerning because their victory yesterday significantly strengthened their hold on the top four. However, Ten Hag will be concerned about such inconsistent play as he works to restore a more promising future for this illustrious club.