With Marcus Rashford set to copy Paul Pogba in ditching Manchester United for a Serie A giant, here are five steps to him returning for £86m…
Marcus Rashford may have glumly watched on from the sidelines as Man Utd produced back-to-back good performances against Liverpool and Arsenal, while Ruben Amorim’s latest comments indicate no immediate route back for the exit-bound forward.
With FC Barcelona’s dire financial situation likely to prevent his ‘dream’ move, Rashford needs to look further afield with Serie A giants AC Milan among his leading options.
A move to AC Milan (or Juventus, potentially) would see Rashford follow former Man Utd midfielder Pogba in ditching the Premier League giants for life in Serie A.
There are similarities between the situations faced by Rashford and Pogba; the latter is undoubtedly a talented footballer who felt he had to leave to reach his potential on another grand stage after butting heads with the man in the dugout, while the forward is in a similar boat as he looks to rediscover his love for football without the added pressure of being United’s local hero.
Pogba’s story resulted in him returning to Man Utd and it would not be a surprise if Rashford eventually does the same. While a transfer – which realistically should have happened in a previous window – is the correct next move for the player (and club), this is a last resort as it’s clear that his heart remains with his boyhood club.
Fortunately for Rashford, there are only five steps in the way of him returning to Man Utd for an £86m fee (a la Pogba)…
A loan (with a buy obligation) to AC Milan
Rashford’s preference appears to be a move to Barcelona, but this is not realistic given how poorly they have been run in recent years.
With Barcelona presumably out of the picture, AC Milan, Juventus and Borussia Dortmund are the main clubs in the running after he admirably turned his nose up at interest from Saudi Arabia.
Realistically, either of these moves would be good for Rashford and perhaps better than his form over the past 18 months warrants. For this article, let’s say AC Milan win the race to sign him.
Rashford’s huge salary has been mooted as the main exit obstacle this month, so a loan is the most realistic outcome. Also, with United growing increasingly desperate to raise funds, it’s not a surprise that they are reportedly insistent on a buy obligation (not an option) clause in this deal.
This could be priced at anything between £25-40m and it could take until the latter days of this window for the clubs to nail down a final figure, though you suspect the buyers are more likely to come out of this deal better off…
READ: Ruben Amorim repeats Sir Alex ploy as Marcus Rashford gets ‘message’
Scoring 25+ goals in multiple Serie A seasons
Serie A – AC Milan particularly – has become the new home for Premier League has-beens, and the lower standard has led to these players performing better in Italy than in England.
Christian Pulisic, Ademola Lookman, Moise Kean and Scott McTominay are all recent examples of players who went from looking average in the Premier League to world beaters in Serie A; it’s hard to see Rashford’s trajectory not following the same script if/when he joins AC Milan.
The standard in Serie A has fallen off a cliff in the past 20 years, so Rashford – with his explosive pace and power – has the potential to tear it up in Italy whether as a striker or winger.
Rashford would likely have a better chance with AC Milan – alongside English pals Tammy Abraham, Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Fikayo Tomori – than other Serie A or European sides to settle in quickly and replicate his 2022/23 form, grabbing bundles of goals and assists to earn admiring glances from his old club.
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Viktor Gyokeres flops at Man Utd
The Rashford sale will certainly contribute to Man Utd signing a new striker in the summer; the 2024 top scorer in Europe – Viktor Gyokeres – is among the leading candidates to join due to his highly publicised fondness of Amorim.
Sporting Lisbon’s descent post-Amorim has been as dramatic as Ajax’s post-Erik ten Hag, but Gyokeres – who has 32 goals in 30 games this season – has continued his extraordinary form without his former boss.
Amorim promised he wouldn’t raid his former club in January, but he said nothing about the summer and United will likely be linked with Gyokeres and the rest of Sporting’s starting XI before the 2024/25 season is over.
Gyokeres has enjoyed a remarkably steep rise from Championship striker to one of Europe’s best forwards. So, it is somewhat surprising that he has reportedly been made available for just 70 million euros (around £63m) when they realistically could demand double as their prized asset remains under contract until 2028.
While his Champions League form suggests Gyokeres will not be another flash in the pan, Premier League clubs are always taking a risk when they buy strikers from B-level divisions such as the Primeira Liga and they rarely pay off. I’m looking at you, Darwin Nunez.
So should Gyokeres prove to be Nunez 2.0, the Red Devils would again be forced into the transfer market for an alternative solution and it would catch their eye if a forward scores 25+ goals in Serie A.
Ruben Amorim gets shown the door
Amorim’s start at Man Utd was as rough as it gets as light-hearted jibes about relegation to the Championship suddenly became serious with the drop zone only seven points away.
The Red Devils remain in an uneasy position, but supporter optimism is rightly on the rise after positive performances (and strong displays of character, most importantly) against Liverpool and Arsenal.
This Man Utd squad have zero credit in the bank, so I’ll stop short of lauding them before Thursday’s Premier League match against Southampton. But for the first time this season, promising signs indicate an upward trajectory.
This is largely thanks to the assertive leadership of Amorim, who has conducted himself admirably amid a crisis as he looks every bit the charismatic leader – with a clear tactical identity – that Ten Hag was not.
We have of course been here before as the special and sh*t of Man Utd’s recent managerial past have tried and failed as the frail-minded players let them down after showing brief signs of promise.
Amorim looks as good a fit for Man Utd as any previous post-Sir Alex Ferguson manager, but two decent games do not take away from the massive rebuild on the inexperienced head coach’s shoulders and Rashford may need his soon-to-be former boss to come up short if he’s to have another crack at being United’s top star.
Sir Gareth arrives at Old Trafford
Amorim is way out as the seventh-favourite to be the next Premier League manager sacked, so his exit won’t come any time soon and it absolutely should not, considering how well he’s handled his first two months in the dugout.
But were Rashford’s return chances boosted by the sacking of Amorim, Man Utd’s proposed £86m re-signing could be nudged further into the ‘here we go’ column if Sir Gareth Southgate is appointed as their next manager.
Southgate was not without his critics for how poorly the summer’s European Championships (and build-up to the tournament) was handled, but he retains respect in the footballing inner circle and has a good relationship with United co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe.
One of Southgate’s biggest failings as England manager was his insistence on siding with his selected favourites. This included Rashford before his form declined to the extent that his manager had no choice but to axe him from his senior squad.
But Rashford often turned up for Southgate in big moments and that would stand him in good stead when Man Utd inevitably look to sign a new attacker for Amorim’s replacement should he establish himself as one of Serie A’s finest stars.
Conor Gallagher, Raheem Sterling, Mason Mount and Kieran Trippier would obviously follow Rashford in joining the Red Devils as Southgate gets the old band back together.
