Manchester United pick WORLD-CLASS Rashford replacement

Marcus Rashford might not have left Manchester United yet, but the Old Trafford club are treating the attacker if he has already departed, with Ruben Amorim having lined up a world-class replacement for the England star.

Rashford has appeared on his way out of the club since Sunday, when Amorim surprisingly left both him and Alejandro Garnacho out of the Man Utd squad to face Manchester City in the Premier League. It was a decision vindicated by a 2-1 win.

The response from the 27-year-old attacker arrived on Tuesday, when he claimed he needed a “new challenge”.

Speaking on Wednesday, Amorim answered back. He kept the door open for Rashford to remain at Old Trafford, but the implication of his actions suggests that the England international is heading rapidly towards the exit.

United have even picked their replacement for their academy star, according to Fichajes, which claims that Nico Williams of Athletic Club is the man designated to be signed.

With a €58 million release clause and an Estimated Transfer Value (ETV) of €51.6m, he is readily attainable and will not cost the earth during January – traditionally a transfer window when it’s tough to make value buys.

Indeed, Nico Williams, who at 22 years old fits the mould of rising star the club wants to sign, would represent an upgrade to Rashford.

Nico Williams: A player for the present and the future

Chased by Barcelona last summer following a stellar campaign in which he scored eight goals and created another 19 across 37 matches for Athletic, Basque attacker Nico Williams primarily plays off the left.

He has yet to hit those heights this term, but coming off a busy summer in which he shone for Spain at Euro 2024, this should perhaps come as little surprise.

Data analytics experts SciSports actually rate Rashford a little higher than him at present, but at just 22, the ceiling that Nico will attain is likely to be higher than even peak Rashford. His potential SciSkill, a rating calculated using hundreds of in-game data points, is 125.3, which if attained would see him rank among the best 15 players in the world.

Nico, meanwhile, would go to Man Utd and instantly be one of their most valuable players. Only Bruno Fernandes and Rashford currently have a higher SciSkill than him, while his potential exceeds all but three of the club’s brightest young players: Leny Yoro, Rasmus Hojlund and Alejandro Garnacho.

Selling Rashford and signing Nico, if he can be persuaded to leave Bilbao, would therefore be a smart move on the part of the Red Devils.