Marcus Rashford is the savior England and Manchester United have been waiting for

The history of soccer is littered with stories of incredible young players who, for whatever reason, never reached their full potential. In many cases, media hype and heavy pressure on teenagers unable to handle those things emotionally get blamed for their downfalls. With that in mind, meet Marcus Rashford, who recorded two goals and an assist in his Premier League debut for Manchester United on Sunday. His first goal was a poacher’s effort, his second a very good header, and his assist showed patience and vision beyond his years.

Beyond that, Rashford looked intelligent and composed throughout the match. He’s four years younger than Harry Kane, but his movement and hold-up play resembled the Tottenham star’s. But surely Louis van Gaal isn’t getting carried away, right? RIGHT?

Of course he is. “Youngsters often play well in the first match,” said van Gaal. “The second is different. Marcus played well in both so he is a special talent.” Arsene Wenger chimed in too. He praised Rashford’s “movement and his intelligence,” and said “he could be a very positive surprise for Manchester United.”

Rashford will score more goals before the season ends. He’ll sneak onto the Euro 2016 squad. He’ll score a goal at that tournament. He’ll have an okay 2016-17 season. And he’ll be playing for Cardiff City in no time. Sorry we never learn our lessons, Marcus.

We have a tie. First, obviously this Lionel Messi free kick deserved recognition.

But we can’t have superstars hogging this section, so shout out to Emerson of Botafogo.

Karim Benzema is out for a month. (AS)

Everton have a new largest shareholder. Farhad Moshiri will eventually become majority owner. (Guardian)

Gerard Pique says he loves United too much to join Pep Guardiola at Manchester City. (ESPN FC)

Milan star M’Baye Niang injured his ankle in a car crash. (Football Italia)

Leicester’s N’Golo Kante will miss two games with a pulled hamstring. (Sky Sports)

Chris Etchingham on the time Inter Milan almost played a friendly against a far-left political group in Mexico. (In Bed With Maradona)

Matt Clough on Sebastian Giovinco’s unlikely marriage with MLS. (These Football Times)

Kieron O’Connor on Arsenal’s finances. (Swiss Ramble)

Here’s a recap of Saturday’s PL action, which was big for Chelsea and Leicester.

So. Uh. Some random Man United kids embarrassed title-contending Arsenal. (The Busby Babe)

Spurs pulled off a comeback win over Swansea. (Cartilage Free Captain)

Manuel Pellegrini’s going out with a trophy after City beat Liverpool on penalties in the League Cup. (Liverpool Offside)

Atlético Madrid sunk Real Madrid in their massive derby game. (Into The Calderon)

Barcelona won the next day, so the La Liga title race is just about over. (Barca Blaugranes)

Juventus beat Inter Milan, securing their top spot in Serie A. (Black and White and Read All Over)

Serie A: 2 games (from 1 p.m.) -- Both games are watchable, but Napoli-Fiorentina at 3 p.m. is the main event.