Marcus Rashford expects to take full part in Manchester United’s preseason, despite having no contact with manager Ruben Amorim.
The 27-year-old will return for duty with the rest of the squad on Monday, having spent the second half of last season at Aston Villa. Rashford feels revitalised after the move, and has spent his summer working with a personal trainer near Marbella.
Although it is understood he has not spoken to Amorim over that time, and the manager’s preference was for all unwanted players to be gone by preseason, the forward wants to stake his place in the team.
That is likely to force United into a decision, with Rashford’s future remaining so open. The club want £40m for the player, and Barcelona are so far the most interested party. They would currently prefer a loan deal, however, as Bayern Munich also monitor the situation. Sources close to Rashford say the club have not discussed any of this with the player.
United’s plan is to have two weeks of fitness work at Carrington, before a friendly against Leeds United in Stockholm ahead of a typical US tour for the Premier League summer series. Amorim’s side will face West Ham United, Bournemouth and Everton there before a home friendly against Fiorentina on 9 August.
Complicating the situation is the awareness on all sides that Rashford obviously needs a good pre-season if even to attract buyers, which mirrors the situation of Jadon Sancho, Antony and Tyrell Malacia. All are returning from loans at Chelsea, Real Betis and PSV Eindhoven, respectively.
The situation illustrates United’s ongoing difficulty in moving players on, something they badly need to do in order to overhaul the squad and meet PSR requirements.
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