England fans react to Marcus Rashford’s performance vs Latvia amid ‘cheat storm’
Marcus Rashford’s second consecutive start for England has seen the Aston Villa forward receive middling reviews on social media.
Rashford started back-to-back Three Lions matches for the first time since October 2023 in this month’s qualifiers against Albania and Latvia, occupying the left edge after returning to form at Villa Park.
The 27-year-old couldn’t add his name to the scoresheet in two comfortable England victories as Reece James, Harry Kane and Eberechi Eze found the net against Latvia on Monday, but did still spark debate.
Rashford’s return to the England team – and the starting lineup for Tuchel’s first two matches – comes at the expense of several in-form Premier League players, with Morgan Gibbs-White not getting a kick.
Furthermore, while he was a lively presence down the flanks and posed an ever-present threat on the break, one incident mid-game highlighted where the Manchester United loanee still needs to improve.
Marcus Rashford slammed for ‘blatant cheating’ v Latvia
Rashford’s 79 minutes at Wembley on Monday may have come without a goal or assist, but in the early stages, he darted into the box before going down all-too easily under pressure from Roberts Savalnieks.
| England | Statistic | Latvia |
| 3 | Goals | 0 |
| 3.57 | xG | 0.31 |
| 8 / 27 | Shots on Target | 1 / 3 |
| 73.4% | Possession | 26.6% |
| 10 | Corners | 2 |
England weren’t given the penalty Rashford was clearly after, and though Harry Kane did score his 71st international goal in the second half, ex-FIFA referee Keith Hackett demanded action against Rashford.
Speaking exclusively to Football Insider on 24 March, Hackett said: “The action by Rashford is blatant cheating.
“Given the [referee’s] correct decision not to award the appealed penalty kick, he should have issued a yellow card to Rashford for an act of simulation [for] attempting to deceive the referee.
“Football authorities need to instruct their referees to take firmer action on these incidents.”
England fans react to ‘selfish’ Marcus Rashford display
Though Rashford’s early penalty shout was rendered moot by James curling home a sensational first-half free-kick against Latvia, the Villa forward’s overall performance didn’t convince the masses.
Rashford did receive praise from some pundits for his display, but many fans on social media questioned these verdicts, arguing Morgan Rogers and Declan Rice provided more effective link-up play with Kane.
At 27, Rashford is no longer the bright-eyed young star who burst onto the scene as Manchester United and England’s next great hope, and that’s been reflected in numerous assessments of his performance.
Rashford 8? Did you watch the game! He was a 6 at best. Didn’t beat his man,couldn’t get any crosses (decent ones) in the box and just poor in general. Roger’s was better than him. Skelly a 8? Pickford one mistake dosnt make it a 4
— Stuart Anderson (@stuartroy23) March 25, 2025
I’m awful either side of the half-way line but could see Rashford end product was really poor. He kept getting in great positions to his credit, but then kept wasting them. Contrast that to the Rice assist in the Kane goal
— Andrew Green (@Picturecorner) March 25, 2025
Rashford was awful, couldn’t put a decent ball into the box to save his life. What game was you watching
— Ashley⭐️⭐️ (@Ashleyb2012) March 25, 2025
Watched Rashford in that first half for England yesterday and I honestly don’t see why people are still crying, he’s clearly lost something and isn’t the player he used to be.
— Spinx (@mwansaa_c) March 25, 2025
Rashford always does too much he is either too selfish or trying too much passing and creating why can’t he find the middle ground he is 27 yrs old still plays like 20
— Surafel (@Sura3969) March 25, 2025
Rashford had enough time and space to cause havoc down the left wing
— Jmp 🏴🏴🇬🇧🇬🇧 (@jmp4260) March 25, 2025
He messed up 🤡
Feels wrong to watch a Rashford performance where he’s only trying to create instead of cutting inside and striking one. His crossing technique is inconsistent and it’s clear he’s a shoot-first player, just not sure why he’s playing a lot more safer for club/country recently.
— h (@htomufc) March 24, 2025
Another bad game from Rashford why he gets picked before our best left winger Grealish I will never understand
— Bhavesh Gujrati (@Bhaveshlivelife) March 25, 2025