Marcus Rashford is back in Manchester after the World Cup, and nobody really knows what happens next. Not Rashford. Not Manchester United. Not even Barcelona, who spent all season acting like they’d definitely keep him.
Barcelona had a deal in place to make Rashford’s loan permanent. They didn’t pull the trigger. Now reports have the La Liga champs angling for another loan instead, which leaves Rashford in a weird spot. He played well in Catalonia. He scored goals. But the money apparently got complicated.
So Rashford reports back to Carrington while his reps figure out where he goes from here. And here’s where it gets interesting.
Could Rashford actually go to Liverpool?
Former Manchester United striker Teddy Sheringham floated the idea on record, and he didn’t laugh it off. He basically said: if United doesn’t want him, why shouldn’t he look out for himself?
“Marcus Rashford to Liverpool would feel like the ultimate betrayal to Manchester United fans,” Sheringham told the Mirror. “But what if Manchester United don’t want him? Then as a player you’ve got to do what’s best for you.”
That’s a real sentence from a guy who won a Treble at Old Trafford. It tells you how fractured things have gotten between Rashford and the club.
There is a catch, though. Rashford’s contract has a clause that lets him talk to any Premier League club for a £40 million fee — except Liverpool and Manchester City. So even if Rashford wanted to make that move, United would have to green-light the negotiation. Sheringham thinks United should be in control here, given the wages they’re still paying a player who basically stopped trying before his loan to Aston Villa.
United needs a forward. Rashford is a forward.
Michael Carrick’s squad needs a left-sided attacker. Rashford fits that description. And Sheringham made the obvious point: why not just fix the relationship and keep him?
“United can try and manipulate the situation to get the best outcome for what they need,” Sheringham said. “He’s a United player so why not utilise that situation to get that extra forward back in the squad that Michael Carrick needs? He’s playing at a World Cup and scoring goals. He’s in your squad. Make the most of it.”
The Treble winner even argued the past gets forgotten fast in football. If Rashford comes back and plays well, everyone moves on. “If Rashford came back firing on all cylinders for Manchester United, working hard for the team at Old Trafford, then everyone is going to be happy, aren’t they?”
But here’s the thing. INEOS has been clear they want Rashford’s massive wages off the books. Too much water under the bridge, as they see it. A reconciliation feels like a long shot. So Rashford might have to wait out Barcelona, hope another European club steps up, or face the reality that his only Premier League escape route is blocked by the one club he’d never consider.
Unless, of course, something changes.
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