Manchester United have suffered a heartbreaking defeat in the Europa League final.The stage was set for the Red Devils to finally lift their first piece of silverware under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer when they travelled to Gdansk to lock horns with Villarreal on Wednesday night.However, it just wasn't to be with the game dragging on to a penalty shootout after 120 minutes in which Gerard Moreno and Edinson Cavani exchanged goals for the two European high-flyers.
Rashford comes under fire
Every single outfield player found the net from 12 yards, but David de Gea proved to be the United man who came up short, watching in horror as Gerónimo Rulli pushed away his effort.
It was a heartbreaking night for United and one that saw many of Solskjaer's players come in for merciless criticism, but perhaps none more so than a certain Marcus Rashford.
Not only has Rashford been a hero away from the pitch for the last few years, but he has also been one of United's best performers across the 2020/21 campaign with no less than 21 goals.
Villarreal vs Man Utd - Europa League Final (Football Terrace)
Rashford faces the media
However, it simply wasn't his night in the Europa League final with the England forward looking like a faded version of the one-man goalscoring machine that we're used to seeing.
But despite an uncharacteristically subpar performance, there was nothing unexpected about the way Rashford stood tall and resolute when speaking to the media after United's crushing defeat.
At this point, remarking that Rashford is an incredibly strong and inspiring individual is stating the obvious, but it couldn't have been any clearer than in his post-match interview with BT Sport.
Rashford's powerful interview
The truly inspiring 23-year-old perfectly channeled the 'United Way' by declaring that finishing second simply isn't good enough, while also insisting that his fellow teammates are up to scratch.
"The feeling inside is difficult to explain," Rashford said to BT Sport. "We came here to win. We've been working so hard all season and this was the opportunity to win a trophy and it didn't happen for whatever reason.
"We have to get rid of the disappointment and look back at the game and see what we did wrong. The team will not give up - no chance. The manager won't allow us to give up. We will come next season with bigger desire.
"People say a lot about Man United going downhill, blah, blah, blah, blah but for me, the club, desire, hunger, talent, ability, the squad, we have everything to compete at the highest level.
"We just have to show it to the world and ourselves, show why we belong in the top places and why we need to win finals like this.
"Second doesn't count for nothing. Manchester City win the league, we finished second. Doesn't mean nothing. Villarreal won the Europa League, we finished second.
"For us it's nothing. I don't want to here 'they were so close' because it means nothing. One winner, one loser. Today we lost. We have to find out why and make sure next time we don't lose."
Well said, Marcus and it's through characters like yourself that United will start winning the titles that their entire philosophy is built upon once again. Make no mistake that the Red Devils will come back stronger.