Manchester United to move for Marcus Rashford replacement in January, after Ruben Amorim leaves Englishman out of matchday squad: report

MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 28: Ruben Amorim, Head Coach of Manchester United, speaks to Marcus Rashford of Manchester United as he prepares to enter the pitch as a substitute during the UEFA Europa League 2024/25 League Phase MD5 match between Manchester United and FK Bodo/Glimt at Old Trafford on November 28, 2024 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)
Rashford and Amorim at Old Trafford (Image credit: Getty Images)

Manchester United are looking to move for Marcus Rashford's replacement as early as January, with Ruben Amorim unconvinced with the Englishman since taking over.

Rashford started Amorim's first two Premier League games in charge of Manchester United, before having to settle as a second-half substitute against both Arsenal and Nottingham Forest.

The Portuguese manager left Rashford - along with Alejandro Garnacho - out of the matchday squad during Sunday's 2-1 victory over Manchester City, however, stating that, after evalutaing his "training, performance, and engagement with team-mates", it became a simple selection decision.

Manchester United looking at potential Marcus Rashford replacements

Marcus Rashford of Manchester United looks dejected after the Premier League match between Manchester United FC and Nottingham Forest FC at Old Trafford on December 07, 2024 in Manchester, England.

Could Rashford be heading to the Old Trafford exit door? (Image credit: Alex Livesey - Danehouse/Getty Images)

As a result, it seems the 27-year-old Manchester United academy graduate's time at Old Trafford is at risk of coming to an end, with reports now linking forwards from across Europe to replace him.

According to L'Equipe, Manchester United are keen on signing PSG forward Randal Kolo Muani in the January transfer window, with a loan with an option to buy deal being touted.

Sky Sports Germany report that Kolo Muani is no longer a part of PSG manager Luis Enrique's plans, with the French side ready to let him leave.

Randal Kolo Muani of Paris Saint-Germain runs with the ball during the UEFA Champions League 2024/25 League Phase MD7 match between Paris Saint-Germain and Atletico Madrid at Parc des Princes on November 06, 2024 in Paris, France. Manchester United target

Kolo Muani is reportedly on the radar at Old Trafford (Image credit: Aurelien Meunier - PSG/PSG via Getty Images)

Having started just two games in all competitions for PSG this season, Kolo Muani's game time with the Parisian's has been extremely limited. Though he's made 14 appearances in total, with two goals and an assist coming in that time, the 26-year-old has been increasingly fazed out of the team, playing just 78 total minutes since the start of November.

Kolo Muani would fit in well to Amorim's 3-4-2-1 formation at Manchester United, with his ability to play as both a central striker and a wide forward lending itself well to any of the forward positions in the starting XI.

Despite Kolo Muani's contract still having three years left to run, and the fact he moved to PSG in the summer of 2023 for more than £75m, Transfermarkt values him at just £25m. That cost is something much more closely aligned with the transfer fee Manchester United would look to pay, too, when considering their desire to stick within the parameters of the Premier League's Profit and Sustainability Rules.

In FourFourTwo's view, it would represent astute business to bring in Kolo Muani in the January transfer window, especially on a loan with an option to buy. If he fails to perform at Old Trafford then there's no obligation to make the move permenant, while Manchester United have signed a few loans in recent years - Marcel Sabitzer, Wout Weghorst, Sofyan Amrabat - highlighting the club is open to all manner of deals.

Ryan Dabbs
Staff writer

Ryan is a staff writer for FourFourTwo, joining the team full-time in October 2022. He first joined Future in December 2020, working across FourFourTwo, Golf Monthly, Rugby World and Advnture's websites, before eventually earning himself a position with FourFourTwo permanently. After graduating from Cardiff University with a degree in Journalism and Communications, Ryan earned a NCTJ qualification to further develop as a writer while a Trainee News Writer at Future.