Why didn't Marcus Rashford play in Man Utd's friendly against Leeds?

Rashford is set to make his first appearance in United colours since going out on loan to Aston Villa at the beginning of 2025. The 28-year-old has joined the Red Devils' pre-season training camp after representing the Three Lions in the World Cup, and Man United manager Michael Carrick intends to give Rashford a shot at earning a place in the squad for the impending 2026-27 season.

After spending a half-season with Villa, Rashford spent the entirety of the 2025-26 campaign with Barcelona after falling out of favour with former Man United boss Ruben Amorim.

• Read next | Who is each Premier League club's record signing?

With all of that history behind him, fans could be forgiven if they expected to see Rashford on the field with the Red Devils on Wednesday in Dublin, where they faced fellow Premier League side Leeds United in a pre-season friendly. However, Rashford was not dressed for the match, as Carrick elected to give the club's recent returnees from the World Cup a little bit more time to get back up to speed.

Rashford, along with England teammate Kobbie Mainoo and Argentina's Lisandro Martinez, were all held out of the side on Wednesday.

“Marcus, Licha, and Kobbie aren’t quite ready yet. We’re preserving them for this weekend,” Carrick told MUTV.

Man United play their final pre-season match on Saturday at AC Milan, setting up Rashford's Red Devils comeback appearance against Amorim, who is now in charge of the Rossoneri.

 

How to watch the Premier League in Canada

Soccer fans in Canada can watch every Premier League match during the 2025-26 season on DAZN.

With Fubo Sports on DAZN, Canadians can catch Premier League action as well as Serie A. Additionally, DAZN is the home of the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, UEFA Conference League, Bundesliga and more.

For pricing information and to sign up to watch, click here.