Kieran Trippier previews Marcus Rashford showdown in EFL Cup final
By Chris Smith
Kieran Trippier believes attack will be the best form of defence when attempting to keep Marcus Rashford quiet in their EFL Cup final clash later this month.
Newcastle United meet Manchester United at Wembley on February 26 in the Magpies' first major final since losing 3-0 to the same opposition in the 1999 FA Cup.
If Eddie Howe's side are to stand a chance against the Red Devils, they'll need to figure out how to handle Rashford, who has hit 11 goals and four assists in 13 appearances across all competitions since returning from the World Cup.
Luckily, Trippier has been to multiple major tournaments with Rashford as England teammates, while he's faced the forward enough times to know his strengths and weaknesses. As such, he thinks he has a plan to come out on top.
"Yeah, it's gonna be important. It's about the areas of the pitch where I can get tight, when I can stand off," Trippier told the Rio Ferdinand presents FIVE YouTube channel.
"But I can't be worried about him, I need to make him chase me going back to his goal. I need to be on the front foot, I need to be positive in my thinking about pushing back. I need to keep him pinned back as much as I can so he's not a threat near our goal.
"That's going to be hard, that's going to be difficult, but I'll do everything I can to make him follow me and track me back."
Before Newcastle can think about Man Utd, they must first focus on an away trip to Bournemouth on Saturday before hosting Liverpool the following week.