Sheringham backs Rashford to join Liverpool despite calling it 'ultimate betrayal'

Teddy Sheringham has given Marcus Rashford his blessing to join Liverpool, acknowledging it would represent the “ultimate betrayal” of Manchester United but arguing the winger has little choice if his boyhood club no longer wants him.

Rashford, 28, is set to return to Old Trafford this summer after a season-long loan at Barcelona, where he contributed 14 goals and 14 assists and won the La Liga title. The move was not made permanent after Barcelona chose to spend £70 million on Anthony Gordon instead, leaving Rashford’s future unresolved ahead of the World Cup.

The England winger fell out of favour under Ruben Amorim, who placed him in a group of players he was eager to move on. Rashford subsequently had loan spells at Aston Villa and Barcelona after publicly stating he was “ready for a new challenge” away from United. Tottenham Hotspur have been linked with a move as part of Roberto de Zerbi’s rebuild, but Sheringham raised the possibility of a far more provocative destination.

“Marcus Rashford to Liverpool would feel like the ultimate betrayal to Manchester United fans, but what if Manchester United don’t want him?” Sheringham told ComeOn. “Then as a player you’ve got to do what’s best for you.”

Despite floating the Anfield scenario, Sheringham stopped short of writing off a return to United entirely. Rashford still has two years remaining on a £325,000-per-week contract and will come back to a club now led by new manager Michael Carrick.

“Manchester United should be in control of the Marcus Rashford situation, not Marcus Rashford. He is still a Manchester United player,” Sheringham said. “That’s what happens when you sign these big, long contracts, and he was happy to sign it at the time to get more money. All of a sudden, he’s not happy and he wants to leave. Back in my days as a player, if you had a contract, you weren’t going anywhere, and it works both ways too.”

Sheringham, who scored the equaliser and assisted the winner in United’s 1999 Champions League final comeback against Bayern Munich, added that United retain the leverage to shape the outcome. “United can try and manipulate the situation to get the best outcome for what they need,” he said. “He’s a United player.”

With Carrick now in the dugout and Rashford returning from a successful spell abroad, how United handle one of the most high-profile contract situations in the Premier League this summer will be one of the defining stories of the transfer window.