Marcus Rashford appears set to return to Manchester United after his season-long loan at Barcelona ends, having been sidelined last season following a fallout with then-manager Ruben Amorim. Barcelona chose not to trigger a £26m option to sign him permanently, and with the club signing wingers Anthony Gordon and Karim Adeyemi, the possibility of another loan move evaporated, prompting Rashford to post a farewell message to Barcelona's fans on 30 July. His likely return matters because, as United's top earner on £325,000 a week, his situation directly affects the club's transfer plans and wage budget under minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe.

Rashford is under contract at Old Trafford until 2028, and if his comeback follows the pattern of United's other World Cup players, he could join the squad's Maynooth training camp next week, roughly three weeks after his last tournament appearance. That could see him feature against Leeds at Croke Park on 12 August or, more likely, against Ruben Amorim's new club AC Milan in Wroclaw on 15 August, at manager Michael Carrick's discretion. At Barcelona he scored 11 goals and provided 14 assists, helping the club win La Liga and the Spanish Super Cup and reach the Champions League quarter-finals, leaving United fans divided over whether his revival abroad signals a fresh start at Old Trafford or unfinished business from his troubled final season there.