Manchester United loanee Marcus Rashford has received a wave of support on social media following his England World Cup call-up. The announcement arrives just two years after he was left out of the Three Lions’ Euro 2024 squad in the wake of a troubled 2023/24 campaign at Old Trafford under Erik ten Hag.
Rashford has shone during his loan spell at Barcelona this season, having claimed both the Spanish Super Cup and the La Liga title. He scored a stunning free-kick in the decisive victory for the latter which added to his existing 13 goals, having also laid on 14 assists across all competitions for the Catalan club.
And the reward for his form is to be included in the Three Lions’ final squad. He has since shared his delight in a post on Instagram at being selected to represent his country for the tournament in North America, which begins on June 11.
He said: “Today marks a full-circle moment for me, from despair to jubilation. Missing out on that Euros squad helped me grow both as a player and a person, and most importantly, gave me a goal to work towards. Thank you so much for this opportunity, and I can’t wait to pull on the shirt at the World Cup.”
Rashford’s post has drawn comments from current United players. Harry Maguire, who has missed out on a place in the squad, wrote: “Love it mate, well deserved,” followed by a red love heart emoji. United skipper Bruno Fernandes has also thrown his support behind Rashford, posting: “Well deserved my brother,” accompanied by a red love heart emoji.
Jordan Henderson, who has also been included in Thomas Tuchel’s 26-man squad also showed his support. The former Liverpool captain is one of several decisions that have been questioned with Ivan Toney and Jarell Quansah among the other surprise inclusions while Luke Shaw, Adam Wharton, Lewis Hall and Morgan Gibbs-White have all been left out.
England’s players are set to head to a training camp in Florida on June 1 before travelling to Kansas City to gear up for their group stage clashes against Croatia, Ghana and Panama. The tournament opens with Mexico taking on South Africa in the curtain-raiser, with England’s first match coming on June 17 against Croatia.
His club future could well be resolved by that point with Barcelona having until June 15 to trigger their £26m buy option for Rashford. It is understood that United have no plans to bring him back into the senior squad for the 2026/27 campaign under Michael Carrick.