Marcus Rashford debuted for Man United in 2016 under Louis van Gaal. In the past 8 seasons, there have been 3 seasons when the English striker scored at least 20 goals for the "Red Devils". However, in the last 3 seasons, Rashford has only done that once.
In the many times he has lost form in recent years, injury has been the biggest reason why the 27-year-old star has not been able to maintain his regular inspiration. Persistent back and shoulder injuries in recent years have been a huge obstacle. In addition to losing his place in the England team, Rashford has also lost his starting position at the club.
Not only being affected by professional factors, the fact that his personal life is being scrutinized too much by the media also makes Rashford tired. Most recently, the incident of him going out at night in Belfast, then losing his place in the fourth round of the FA Cup last season was a big scandal. At that time, M.U's captain Erik ten Hag decided to remove his student's name from the registration list. The announcement from Man United said that the English striker must take responsibility for his actions.
This season, things have improved for Marcus Rashford, with 7 goals in 24 appearances in all competitions. However, that is not enough. Ruben Amorim needs every player who wants to start to adapt to the 3-4-3 formation, this is something Rashford has tried but failed to do.
How much Rashford will leave for, or when, will depend largely on his contract status at United. The 27-year-old signed a five-year extension in the summer of 2023, after his best season in eight years at United. At that time, Rashford had just one year left on his contract and his form after the 2022 World Cup has kept him at Old Trafford.
After being renewed in the summer of 2023, Rashford's current contract runs until 2028. This contract does not have a 1-year extension clause, so leaving will be a little less difficult. However, the biggest obstacle is still salary. When he signs the extension in the summer of 2023, Rashford will receive £325,000/week, equivalent to Raphael Varane and Casemiro at that time.
Currently, any team that wants to get Rashford will have to pay a contract termination fee. If that happens in the summer of 2025, the remaining contract years will be 3, which will be a huge barrier in terms of fee, although there is information that Man United is "big discount" Rashford when only receiving 40 million pounds is enough.
If Rashford's price is too high and Man United still want to push him away, the Manchester team can consider paying part of the English star's salary to the new club.
Most recently, Man United handled the Jadon Sancho case in this way. The English striker was loaned to Dortmund in the latter stages of last season. BVB paid the majority of his salary (around £200,000/week). Man United paid the rest, plus performance-related bonuses.
Sancho is currently on loan at Chelsea. The Blues also pay the majority of the 24-year-old's wages. Chelsea's advantage over Dortmund is that if he plays well, Chelsea can buy him outright. It's possible that United are looking for a similar solution for Rashford at the moment.
Finally, selling Rashford will help Man United avoid problems with the Premier League's Financial Sustainability Principles (PSR). Rashford is a "homegrown" player, trained and nurtured by the club since he was a young talent, so if he is sold, Man United will consider it a net profit.
If the deal goes through, Old Trafford will be the first club to make a significant net profit on a single deal since Sir Jim Ratcliffe took over. Scott McTominay's case was similar.
