Marcus Rashford’s unique celebration this season has started a trend. After 29 goals (so far), the Englishman has introduced a new technique to celebrate them in what appears to be a bold message to his detractors and an inspirational message to the young players.
The Manchester United attacker frequently points his finger at his brain, as if to convey a message about his attitude as a top player. The Englishman hasn’t explained the significance of his new celebration, but it’s cool enough to have spread like wildfire in football.
This season, a lot of athletes have shown their respect for Rashford by copying his goal celebration. This includes Jadon Sancho, his good buddy and teammate at Manchester United, who takes pleasure in the celebration and has even carried it out after scoring a few goals this season.
Throughout the season, a number of other football players have mimicked the celebration—some to honor Rashford, others to disparage him. For instance, Aurelian Tchouameni celebrated his incredible goal for France during their 2-1 semifinal triumph over England in Qatar. It’s Ruben Neves’ birthday, he insists.
The most recent footballer to pull off this cold celebration is Kylian Mbappe’s brother, Ethan Mbappe, who also plays for Paris Saint-Germain. The 16-year-old midfielder has been with PSG’s U-19 team and frequently trains with the senior squad with his brother. Ethan, unlike his brother, is a left-footed midfielder who loves to keep things under control. He does, however, show a talent for making forward runs to score goals. In a recent friendly game, the Frenchman scored an amazing goal for PSG U19 and opted to perform the Rashford celebration.
The 16-year-old looks to be a great fan of Rashford, who has impressed for United in all competitions this season. He has, of course, pumped up the Red Devils faithful, who feel Rashford has the clout to bring Mbappe and his brother to Old Trafford.
Of course, Mbappe looks to have a lot of regard for Rashford and is friends with him. Throughout the season, the two have frequently connected on social media, with the French forward frequently commenting on the Englishman’s Instagram postings to express his respect for him.
It also looks like Kylian enjoyed seeing his brother score and perform the Rashford celebration in the latest game, as he commented three ‘fire’ emojis on his Instagram profile – where Ethan had published a photo of him performing the Rashford celebration.
The Ruben Neves comparisons are also being ridiculed by United supporters, who believe the celebration to be the Portuguese midfielder’s signature move. Although it hasn’t been proven, judging by how often Rashford has done the dance this season, it’s reasonable to assume that the Englishman served as inspiration for everyone else producing the dance these days. Accusations that Rashford is stealing someone else’s celebration won’t dissuade him because he consistently celebrates goals, and this helps to shape his unique persona in the football community.