Marcus Rashford still has two years left on his £325,000-a-week contract at Manchester United, making it almost impossible to find a permanent move this summer.
Marcus Rashford’s position at Manchester United has changed significantly in recent years (Image: Getty Images)
Three years ago, Marcus Rashford was on top of the world. The Manchester United academy graduate has signed a luxurious new five-year contract with his boyhood club on the back of the best season of his career.
Rashford scored 30 goals and provided 12 assists in 56 games in 2022-23, becoming the first United player to reach the 30-goal mark since Robin van Persie in 2012-13. His remuneration was a significant pay rise from £200,000 a week to £325,000 a week.
As John Murtaugh stated in the announcement, he was 25 years old and at the peak of his career.
“Now that he’s in his prime, we know he can still achieve a lot more and we understand that Marcus wants to succeed at the highest level here at Manchester United,” United’s director of football said at the time.
Follow Man United’s FB page! Keep up with the latest United news and more on our dedicated Facebook page
“Working with Erik ten Hag and his coaches is the perfect environment for Marcus to continue developing into one of the best attacking players in the world.”
Rashford said of Ten Hag: “I couldn’t be more excited about the future under this manager.” Ten Hag himself has just signed a one-year contract extension with United, with just three months left in his term.
United were happy with the way things were at the time. And while Rashford’s form hasn’t fallen off a cliff – after all, he had 14 goals and 14 assists last season – his contract poses all sorts of problems and is a burden for the forward to carry.
Marcus Rashford is likely to remain at Manchester United this summer due to his huge wages (Image: Jose Breton/NurPhoto/Shutterstock)
Rashford still has two years left on his £325,000-a-week contract with United, but neither he nor the club want to fulfill it. United are keen to release the England international and the feeling is mutual.
A permanent move to Barcelona, where he spent the 2025-26 season on loan, has yet to materialize, with the Catalan giants looking to sign Anthony Gordon and Karim Adeyemi in exchange for a £26m fee. And now, post-World Cup, Rashford is stuck.
United would like to take him off their wages, but despite a number of interested parties, no suitable contract exists for them. Barcelona wanted a further loan, but United were reluctant to sell him to their Premier League rivals.
Erik ten Hag and John Murtagh were the men behind Marcus Rashford’s big-money deal (Image: PA)
Rashford has rejected approaches from Galatasaray and Fenerbahce, leaving him with no realistic exit option. A report in La Gazzetta dello Sport summarizes the issue. United are in talks with Roma over the signing of French midfielder Manu Kone, who the club values at 60 million euros (approximately 5.1 billion yen).
Michael Carrick’s side are said to be unwilling to pay that much for a World Cup star and are tipped to be open to offering Rashford as part of a deal. However, his high salary makes him the highest paid player in Serie A and therefore far from Rome’s league.
Under Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s ownership, United have sought to cut costs across all departments, even if it has brought negative headlines. The club’s higher-ups must be cursing former manager Ten Hag, former executives Murtaugh and other former decision-makers.
Rashford was given three weeks off at the end of England’s World Cup campaign and is currently on holiday. But through no fault of his own, his huge salary means he will return to United, a club that doesn’t want him, against his wishes.
Join our new MAN UTD WhatsApp community and receive your daily Manchester United content from Mirror Football. Community members also receive special offers, promotions, and advertisements from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can always check out. If you are interested, please read our privacy notice.
