Juan Mata has revealed his Manchester United transfer wishplaceholder image
Juan Mata has revealed his Manchester United transfer wish | Manchester United via Getty Images
There will be a lot of change at Man Utd this summer and it could see an academy graduate leave.
Juan Mata has revealed he would love Marcus Rashford to transform his Manchester United fortunes and remain at the club this summer. The 27-year-old has not played for United since December last year after he was dropped for the Manchester derby win over Man City due to performance issues.
Rashford later revealed he was open to a 'new challenge' in his professional career before he joined Aston Villa on loan, which also included the option to make it permanent for £40m. United still value him at that figure, though the combination of his transfer fee and £315,000-a-week salary make a permanent exit difficult this summer. His representatives held talks with Barcelona earlier in the year, while he is also understood to be an option for Bayern Munich.
It was revealed last week, that Rashford is one of five players who will not be due back at Carrington for initial pre-season tests so that he can work on a transfer, though those close to the forward insist he was happy to return to United this summer. It has made a messy situation even messier and seems like there is no way back for him under head coach Ruben Amorim.
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Juan Mata wants Marcus Rashford to stay
Juan Mata was one of the star players at Manchester United when Marcus Rashford famously broke into the first team under Louis van Gaal. The pair played together for six years at Old Trafford as Rashford rapidly rose through the ranks to become one of their most important players.
It means Mata knows Rashford better than most, and he still hopes there is a way back for him at the club, even if it looks certain he will leave this summer.
“I saw his first training (session) with us. I love him. As a kid, I called him ‘the wonderkid’,” he told The Athletic. “The way he played was fearless, you could feel he could win a game by himself at any time when he was playing at his best.”
“As a Man United fan and as a friend of Marcus, I wish that he can succeed here because it’s his club, his boyhood club,” he says. “I don’t know what’s going to happen but if he stays and he can actually be happy and enjoy, I think it will be a win-win situation for both the club and him.”
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