Marcus Rashford’s 100th goal for Manchester United was enough to defeat West Ham and respect the Old Trafford club’s 85th anniversary.
Since 1937, United has played 4,163 games in a row with a player that went through their youth development program, either starting the game or sitting on the bench.
The best of the current generation, Rashford, scored the game-winning goal at Old Trafford against a tenacious West Ham team.
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Seven minutes before halftime, Christian Eriksen floated a beautiful far-post cross across for the 24-year-old, who then smashed in a powerful header to become the 22nd United player to score 100 goals.
As a result of Antony’s injury, Cristiano Ronaldo was given a chance to start. Still, he failed to take advantage of it, squandering one superb second-half opportunity after Rashford had sent him rushing into the penalty area.
In a nail-biting conclusion, David de Gea produced an outstanding save to stop Michail Antonio and Kurt Zouma until, practically with the game’s last play, the goalkeeper extra to Spain turned away a thunderous Declan Rice shot.
The outcome allowed United to move to fifth place in the standings and extend their undefeated streak to eight games. At the same time, West Ham’s inconsistent play outside European competition puts them in 13th place, only three points above the relegation zone.