Marcus Rashford can drive final nail into Man Utd masterplan as third transfer nears

With Marcus Rashford still out of the first-team picture at Old Trafford, his seemingly inevitable departure will also put a long-awaited end to this former manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s dream

Marcus Rashford’s Manchester United exile and expected exit this month will also obliterate old manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s generational forward-line dream.

After Ruben Amorim arrived at Old Trafford and began to implement his vision, already out-of-favour forward Rashford was swiftly ousted from first-team consideration on the back of poor training ground performances.

Though Rashford remains a Red Devil for now – and has slightly backtracked on his previous ‘new challenge’ admission with his match minutes having been reduced to zero – his future looks bleak in Manchester, and rumours of a difficult move to Barcelona have now surfaced.

If the Englishman does wave goodbye, the vision that former United boss Solskjaer had for the team’s frontline – that it would be led by Rashford, fellow Carrington graduate Mason Greenwood and £73m signing Jadon Sancho – will be no more.

As the 2021/22 season began, and long-time target Sancho was finally snatched away from Borussia Dortmund, Solskjaer admitted at the time that this youthful forward line – with an average age of slightly over 21 – was the future of United for many years to come.

“Jadon is a signing that we expect to stay at Man United for many, many years,” claimed the Norwegian boss. “It’s also that part of it that we have a young, up-and-coming forward line.”

However, such a plan would never come to fruition. Sancho’s time at Old Trafford would be marred by sub-par performances and a falling out with Erik ten Hag. After a swift exile back in Germany, he was shipped out to Chelsea, whose obligation to buy Sancho becomes permanent this summer should they finish in the league’s top 14, which is essentially a guarantee.

Greenwood would also leave the club in 2024. He was suspended by United when charged with attempted rape, assault occasioning actual bodily harm and controlling and coercive behaviour in 2022. The 23-year-old denied the charges, which were subsequently dropped, and eventually joined Marseille in a deal worth up to £26.6m following a season on loan at Getafe.

Now, as Rashford’s potential exit lingers, Solskjaer’s plan has fallen beyond a state of tatters. In fact, one potential landing spot for the 27-year-old could be Ligue 1, where he would join up with former team-mate Greenwood.

L’Equipe report that Marseille, currently sitting second in their league behind PSG, have enquired about the services of Rashford. La Blaugrana are another team who have supposedly shown an interest in signing Rashford, though new reports suggest that a deal would be tough.

Despite Rashford’s representatives reportedly meeting with Catalan officials, the La Liga outfit must offload players before they can sign any others, and such departures have not yet materialised.

The official programme cover for Manchester United v Rangers has been revealed, and it is paying tribute to ‘The King’, Denis Law. As well as the cover, there will be special features inside dedicated to the Manchester United and Scotland legend. Copies will be available at Old Trafford on matchday or online.