Marcus Rashford close to agreeing new five-year, £250,000-a-week deal with Manchester United 
Marcus Rashford is close to signing a new five-year contract with Manchester United worth around £250,000 a week. United hope to be in a position to be able to announce a new deal for Rashford before the club fly to Australia on July 8 for the start of their pre-season tour in what would be a significant coup for manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. The England striker, 21, has been linked with a number of leading European clubs, including Barcelona, but he views his future at Old Trafford and is ready to sign a lucrative new contract that, with bonuses, will catapult him towards the top end of United’s pay scale but behind top earners Alexis Sanchez and Paul Pogba. Rashford has usurped Romelu Lukaku as first choice centre-forward under Solskjaer and will be entrusted to spearhead the attack next season, when they will hope for a dramatic improvement on last term’s dismal sixth placed finish, 32 points behind champions Manchester City. Lukaku is hoping to move to Inter Milan.
Significant progress in contract talks has resulted in United getting close to finalising a deal and there is some optimism Rashford will put pen to paper once the first team has returned for pre-season training. United also still hope to tie goalkeeper David De Gea - out of contract at the end of next season - to a new long-term deal. The majority of Solskjaer’s squad are due back in on Monday, when the manager and his staff will commence a pre-season programme intended to dramatically boost fitness levels before their planned departure for Perth a week later.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka, whose £50 million move from Crystal Palace was formally announced on Saturday, will have a short holiday before joining up with the squad for the tour after the right back’s exploits at the England Under-21 Championships.
Wan-Bissaka became United’s second signing of the summer after Wales winger Daniel James and, according to executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward, the club are working to sign more “exciting” players who fit the “long-term vision” of the club.
In an internal email to staff - seen by the Daily Telegraph - that was sent shortly before official announcement of the Wan-Bissaka deal, Woodward wrote: “Despite the inflated nature of the transfer market and constant speculation and stories, which can be misleading, the recruitment team - in conjunction with the manager (Ole Gunnar Solskjaer) - are working calmly behind the scenes to bring in other exciting players that fit their long-term vision for the club.”
United’s recruitment plans have come under intense scrutiny in recent weeks but the club have been surprised by some of the criticism, not least given that the transfer market in general has been slow to take off and many of their Premier League rivals have yet to do business. Much discussion has focused on United’s continuing wait to appoint a technical director but Woodward is prepared to take his time to get what he sees as the right man. Solskjaer is thought to still be in the market for two midfielders, a centre half and possibly a right sided forward, although incomings are likely to be influenced by who departs amid continuing doubts over the futures of Lukaku, Pogba and Sanchez among others.
United are interested in the Newcastle midfielder, Sean Longstaff, and Bruno Fernandes, of Sporting Lisbon, as well as Leicester defender Harry Maguire, even if the Midlands club’s demands for a fee in excess of £80 million are viewed as an example of an inflated market. Jadon Sancho, the Borussia Dortmund and England winger, and Declan Rice, West Ham’s England midfielder, have also interested United. Solskjaer has hailed Wan-Bissaka as the prototype of the player he wants to attract as he bids to remodel United’s squad. The 21-year-old has signed a five-year contract with the option of a sixth year worth around £80,000 a week after United agreed an initial £45 million deal with Palace, with a further £5 million payable in add ons.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2019/06/29/marcus-rashford-close-agreeing-new-five-year-250000-a-week-deal/
