Marcus Rashford is set to receive a new shirt number at Manchester United after his previous No. 10 shirt was handed to Brazilian forward Matheus Cunha, who joined the club from Wolves in a £62.5 million transfer. The 28-year-old England international, who has not played a competitive match for United since a Europa League clash against Viktoria Plzen in December 2024, has rejoined his teammates for a pre-season training camp in the Republic of Ireland.
This marks a significant turn of events for Rashford, whose Old Trafford career appeared to be over after being frozen out by former manager Ruben Amorim and sent on loan to Aston Villa and Barcelona.
However, Rashford now looks poised to play a role under current manager Michael Carrick for the upcoming 2026-27 season. Speaking after Saturday's 1-1 friendly draw against Paris Saint-Germain in Gothenburg, Carrick expressed optimism about Rashford's return. "I've played with him. I played in the game he made his debut, so we have a history," Carrick said.
"We have got a full squad this week in Dublin. We fly straight there and have a few days where we have the whole group back together. Marcus is part of that, and Kobbie and Lisandro. We look forward to seeing them." Rashford and eight other players have rejoined the group as Manchester United's pre-season camp officially kicks off.
With his No. 10 shirt occupied by Cunha, Rashford faces an awkward scenario but is reported by Fabrizio Romano to be taking over the No. 14 shirt. Rashford previously wore the No. 14 during his loan spell at Barcelona, and the number has remained vacant at Old Trafford since Christian Eriksen's departure at the end of the 2024-25 campaign.
This squad number assignment suggests the forward, who is under contract at Manchester United until the summer of 2028, will feature in Carrick's plans, provided no transfer bids are accepted before the window closes.
Meanwhile, INEOS has outlined an exit threshold for Rashford amid these fresh clues regarding his future at the club.
In other transfer developments, Romano confirms a Man Utd u-turn on a transfer, stating there are "concrete, strong, likely chances" of a deal happening. Additionally, winger Amad is reportedly itching to work with Marcus Rashford again during the pre-season training camp.
Amid these squad adjustments, Arsenal has been backed to complete a shock signing from Manchester United that pundits claim makes perfect sense. Beyond Old Trafford, football analysts are also predicting which clubs the summer's biggest free agents will sign for.
Meanwhile, in wider Premier League news, Tottenham Hotspur midfielder James Maddison was denied a major moment on his return from injury. The Premier League has issued an official statement explaining why Tottenham were not awarded a penalty in their recent draw against Leeds United, addressing the controversy that arose as the clock ticked down in that fixture.
