Manchester United returned to pre-season training on Monday, but five players were effectively barred from joining their teammates.
The 2025-26 campaign is over one month away from starting when Arsenal arrive at Old Trafford.
However, before then, Manchester United has five games and roughly five weeks to prepare for the most important season in years for the club.
The majority of United’s players returned to Carrington on Monday, 7th July, where they met rigorous physical tests to ensure they had kept fit over the summer.
Tuesday saw Matheus Cunha in his first United training session, where he impressed thanks to his clinical finishing in front of goal. Diego Leon was also spotted taking part in the session.
The rest of the squad is expected to return in the coming days, having been granted additional leave; however, five players aren’t welcome to return for United this summer.
However, one of them has.
Ruben Amorim takes part in a rondo drill with Manchester United players.
Photo by Ash Donelon/Manchester United via Getty Images
Marcus Rashford reports to Carrington for pre-season
Despite being one of the five told not to bother returning for pre-season, Marcus Rashford has not heeded this advice; instead, he has decided to report back to Carrington this week.
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The Athletic reports that United’s outcast has been at the Manchester United training ground this week, both Monday and Tuesday, despite being given time away to explore a transfer move.
However, Rashford has not been allowed to take part in team training with Amorim, and the club, instead, has him working individually, which shows that he is not being considered at all by the head coach for a return.
With his teammates working toward the 2025-26 campaign, Rashford will be a lonely figure at Carrington this week, with the brutal action to deny him team training done so in an effort to give Amorim the players he will likely have come August and to avoid disruption.
On Tuesday, United took another step toward showing Rashford he has no place at the club.
Manchester United officially strip Marcus Rashford of his number 10 shirt
If Rashford had any illusions over his future involving a return to Old Trafford, United surely shot those down on Tuesday.
Despite it already being widely assumed, United posted on X to officially confirm that Cunha had been awarded the number 10 shirt.
Cunha was donning his new number in training, and this should all but show Rashford the door, if he had any ambition of staying. Last week, it was reported that Rashford was ready to give 100 per cent in training for United. Well, now the club isn’t giving him that chance.
Whether or not this is something that the fanbase agrees with, for Amorim and the players who will be here next year, it is probably the right decision, as harsh as it may seem.