Benni McCarthy helped revitalise Manchester United star Jadon Sancho

Benni McCarthy is getting a lot of credit for the work he has done with Marcus Rashford this season, but he continues to excite Manchester United fans as he revitalises Jadon Sancho.

Former Premier League striker McCarthy arrived in the summer as part of Erik ten Hag’s coaching set-up. The 45-year-old, who played for Blackburn and West Ham, became first-team coach and it was obvious from day one that he was brought in to get the best out of the club’s strikers.

McCarthy scored 37 goals in 120 appearances in the Premier League but his attention how switched to helping other players score. According to the Daily Mail, Jadon Sancho asked to work one-on-one with the coach at the start of the year, after seeing the drastic improvements made by Rashford.

It took time but we can all see the incredible work McCarthy is doing now. Rashford is on route to score an impressive 30 goals this season, with 24 to his name as things stand.

The report states McCarthy was asked to take a few sessions with United’s U-23s at Carrington, which were observed by Ten Hag and his coaches, before he was offered a full-time position while the club were on tour last summer.

Furthermore, It is understood that McCarthy did not ask about the salary before accepting.

Sancho struggled for form and fitness during the first half of the season, with three foals in 14 games before an injury took him out of the game for a while in October. Since returning to the side he has scored in the 2-2 draw with Leeds and in the 3-0 win over Leicester City on Sunday.

Erik ten Hag has made some tactical changes to help Sancho’s game. We know he likes having the ball in tight areas, but he isn’t direct like Alejandro Garnacho or Sancho, so it has made sense to play him centrally as a no 10 to ensure he gets on the ball more often.

“[I want to] help these young players, push them, change their mindset and really try to make the difference to United this season,” McCarthy told MUTV a few days after his arrival in Manchester.

McCarthy is achieving what he set out to do and Ten Hag was right to take a chance on him.

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