Marcus Rashford is expected to return to Manchester United's Carrington training complex next week to begin pre-season preparations. The first group of players is scheduled to report on Monday, July 7th, for medical tests before commencing training.
Rashford's return comes after spending the second half of the 2024/25 season on loan at Aston Villa. During his time with Villa, the 27-year-old forward showed improved form, scoring four goals and providing six assists in 17 appearances.
Despite his return to Manchester United for pre-season, the club is reportedly open to selling Rashford during the summer transfer window. However, as of now, there have been no concrete developments regarding a potential transfer. It is understood that Rashford is prepared to participate in the club's pre-season schedule and will give his best as long as he remains under contract with Manchester United.
There has been reported interest from other clubs, including Barcelona and Bayern Munich. Barcelona's interest may intensify as they seek to bolster their attack.
Manchester United has a series of pre-season friendlies lined up. They will face Leeds on July 19th. Following that, the team will travel to the United States to compete in the Premier League Summer Series, where they will play against West Ham, Bournemouth, and Everton. They will then host Fiorentina at Old Trafford.
In the past, Rashford has demonstrated a strong work ethic by beginning his pre-season training early. In 2017, he was seen engaging in rigorous workouts during his holiday. He posted a video on Instagram of himself doing drills in the sand at the Nike World Campus.
Recently, Rashford shared his current training schedule on his Instagram story. This came after he responded to a fan who questioned his dedication, with Rashford asserting that he was feeling good due to being injury-free.
The situation is similar to that of Jadon Sancho a year ago, who participated in pre-season despite a fallout with then-manager Erik ten Hag, before eventually joining Chelsea on loan.
