Manchester United chief Sir Jim Ratcliffe has not ruled out the painful prospect of selling two of the club’s outstanding young stars, Alejandro Garnacho and Kobbie Mainoo – while the Red Devils have set Marcus Rashford’s suitors a very achievable asking price if they want to land the 27-year-old in January.
Ratcliffe has shown himself not adverse to some difficult decisions since assuming control of the Red Devils earlier this year. After plans emerged over the summer to make some 250 staff redundant at the club, together with some big-name departures both on and off the field, the British billionaire has shown no mercy in his efforts to restore Manchester United to greatness.
Indeed, two huge changes have also been announced in recent weeks with Ruben Amorim replacing Erik ten Hag as manager at the start of last month, while Sunday just gone saw the club announce the unexpected departure of sporting director Dan Ashworth after a little over five months at the club.
Now with United needing to keep a close eye on their finances and ensure they don’t breach the Premier League’s strict Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR), a stunning report on Wednesday claimed Ratcliffe is planning a wholesale clearout of his squad – with all but a handful of players safe from being moved on.
Now, though, according to the Daily Mail, United are also open to the sale of two of their crown jewels in Garnacho and Mainoo, though as the report states, that is a scenario Ratcliffe would rather avoid.
‘Another option would be for United to sell either of their two crown jewels – Kobbie Mainoo or Alejandro Garnacho – but that is something the club want to avoid’, the report writes.
At the same time, it’s reported that United are now seeking a lowly fee to move Rashford on, with a modest asking price of around £40m now on the forward’s head.
‘It’s understood the 27-year-old’s asking price would have been as much as £100m when he scored 30 goals in Erik ten Hag’s first season at United. But Rashford’s loss of form and the contract he signed last year worth a prohibitive £325,000-a-week means that his value has more than halved.
‘Even then, United are not anticipating any offers for Rashford who has started the last two games on the bench ahead of Thursday evening’s Europa League clash with Viktoria Plzen.’
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Rashford offered to several top European sides
Reports on Wednesday evening claimed Rashford had already been ‘offered’ to Barcelona and their sporting director Deco was keen on the potential deal and was exploring ways in which he could finance his signing.
Our sources have also long revealed Paris Saint-Germain’s interest in signing the forward, with our reporter Rudy Galetti revealing back in October that the French giants were ready to renew their efforts to land the 27-year-old in 2025.
Per Galetti, their manager Luis Enrique is a huge admirer of the 60-times capped England man and believes he would be the perfect addition to breathe new life into their attack.
The possibility of the 138-goal forward moving to PSG has also been backed by the Mail’s Chris Wheeler in his report, while Sky Germany reporter Florian Plettenberg insists that while a January exit cannot be ruled out, a move in the summer now looks a strong possibility for Rashford.
Plettenberg stated on X: “One reason why a sale is being discussed: if he were to leave the club due to his very high salary, it would free up critical points in the complicated Financial Fair Play system, which, in turn, would give the Red Devils more room to manoeuvre in the transfer market.”
Explaining why United are ready to axe their homegrown star, Plettenberg pointed to the brutal reason of financial necessity.
He continued: “One reason why a sale is being discussed: if he were to leave the club due to his very high salary, it would free up critical points in the complicated Financial Fair Play system, which, in turn, would give the Red Devils more room to manoeuvre in the transfer market.”
Rashford has seven goals and three assists from 23 appearances across competitions for United so far this season, including three notches in the five games Amorim has overseen so far.
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Meanwhile, the man billed as Ashworth’s replacement, technical director Jason Wilcox, has been credited with leading the negotiations to secure the signing of a talented Paraguayan teenager who now looks destined to become United’s first signing under Amorim.
Diego Leon is the player in question, with Wilcox having negotiated a bargain fee with his side Cerro Porteno to bring the teenager to Old Trafford.
With Wilcox likely to fill the void on at least a medium-term basis alongside the club’s head of recruitment, Christopher Vivell, theories over Ashworth’s exit continue to bubble to the surface. However, amid all the bluster, Rio Ferdinand appears to have offered the most nailed-on reasoning behind the 53-year-old’s surprise exit.
Elsewhere, and amid talk of United’s mass squad clearout,Ally McCoist has had no hesitation in naming Christian Eriksen and Casemiro as the first two players to be forced out of the club.
Explaining why Amorim likes his midfielders with more energy to make his system work, McCoist believes the pair are destined to become immediate fall guys of the Portuguese coach’s regime.
Rashford’s disciplinary issues and downwards Man Utd trajectory
Rashford stats
-Rashford was dropped to the substitutes bench for Man Utd’s Premier League game at Wolves on Boxing Day 2022 after oversleeping and arriving late for a team meeting. He subsequently scored the winner after his introduction from the bench.
-Hours after a 3-0 Manchester derby defeat in November 2023, Rashford was told by then Man Utd boss Erik ten Hag that it was “unacceptable” that the forward went to a reported “intimate, pre-planned celebration in honour of his birthday at a private area of a Chinawhite organised by his friends.”
-Rashford was reportedly dropped from the starting line-up for United’s Carabao Cup fourth-round defeat by Newcastle three days later as a disciplinary measure.
-Rashford called in sick for training after a 12-hour nightclub bender in Belfast in January 2024 and was subsequently left out of United’s 4-2 win over Newport in the FA Cup fourth round. Rashford was fined two weeks’ wages for the incident.