Marcus Rashford has suffered a hamstring injury which looks to have brought his season to a premature end, having signed for Aston Villa on loan in January from Manchester United
What now for Marcus Rashford? With his season seemingly over after suffering a hamstring injury, the England forward must now plot the next move in his storied career.
Unwanted at his boyhood club Manchester United, Rashford faces a potentially career-defining summer as he ponders his immediate future. With no way back for him at United as long as Ruben Amorim is in charge, Rashford has two options – secure a permanent move elsewhere or another loan switch if that first objective proves impossible.
Although United's medical staff are liaising with their counterparts at Aston Villa, where Rashford is on loan until the end of the season, the forward will not return to his parent club to undergo his rehab. Having Rashford back at United's Carrington training complex would create an unwanted and unnecessary distraction for Amorim, after all the controversy of the player's contentious departure following their fallout.
But unless United can agree a deal with another club for Rashford when the transfer window opens in early June, the 26-year-old will have no option but to report back for pre-season training in early July and potentially even go on their three-game summer tour of the US.
Given the acrimony between Rashford and Amorim, having the former back training with his erstwhile United team-mates, let alone embarking on a two-week tour of America with the squad, would be counterproductive for both parties. Rashford favours a move to a club abroad that can guarantee him Champions League football, with Barcelona said to be his preferred option.
But it remains to be seen if the Catalan club want him and, even if they do, whether they are willing to pay his £40million transfer fee and wages of £350,000-a-week. One of the stumbling blocks for Rashford in terms of his next move, whether permanent or not, is his exorbitant salary.
Villa are covering a significant portion of Rashford's wages, complemented by performance-related bonuses relating to goals and appearances. Against that backdrop, Rashford is understood to be willing to take a pay cut to secure a move away this summer and draw a line under his United career.
But if no club can pay United’s asking price and meet his wage demands - even if they are lowered to facilitate such a move - another loan switch is his only option. It all points to an uncertain future for a player who was the poster boy for English football just five years ago, as much for his actions off the pitch - in successfully campaigning for free school meals for underprivileged children - as his heroics on it.
Back then, Rashford could do no wrong, a role model on and off the pitch, a shining light in the often grubby and unpalatable world of modern football. Now, with the door closed at the club he has been at since he was seven, Rashford finds himself at a personal and professional crossroads, facing a decision this summer that, in all likelihood, will make or break his career.
In that sense, the stakes could not be higher.