Why did Marcus Rashford take second Man Utd penalty against Everton? Captain Bruno Fernandes explains unusual decision to hand spot-kick to forward amid dressing room rift

Fernandes and Rashford converted from the spot before the half-time break to hand the Red Devils a 2-0 victory over the Toffees despite putting in an insipid display at Old Trafford. The skipper took the first one after James Tarkowski tripped Alejandro Garnacho to become the club’s all-time top scorer from the penalty spot. However, when Ben Godfrey brought down Garnacho a few minutes later, the Portuguese did not step up for the penalty duties and instead allowed Rashford to have a go - who slotted it into the corner to double the lead.

Speaking to TNT Sports after the match, Fernandes explained: "We both kick the penalties. I asked Marcus if he wanted to take and he said he was confident. He is one of the penalty takers that the manager chooses. I felt I had my one, Rashy could get his goal from the penalty."

Although Fernandes' gesture is undoubtedly a show of support for an under-performing Rashford, there have been reports of a dressing rift at United following the English forward's tequila-fuelled Belfast trip back in January. Rashford allegedly partied until the early hours of the morning and subsequently missed a training session which forced Erik ten Hag to keep him out of their FA Cup fourth-round clash against Newport. The incident has not gone down well within the dressing room as several senior players felt "let down" by Rashford's little thought-out trip to Belfast.

Fernandes has scored 17 spot kicks for United since he joined the club in 2020. This is the most by any player in the division since then and his decision to share one with Rashford saw United having two different scorers from the spot for the first time in the opening 45 minutes of a Premier League match.

United closed the gap to fourth-laced Aston Villa to eight points following the victory - but the Villans do have a match in hand. Ten Hag's men will be back in action next Sunday in a blockbuster FA Cup quarterfinal against Liverpool at Old Trafford.