Selling Marcus Rashford has proven to be way tougher than Manchester United thought, especially after a successful loan spell with Aston Villa last season.

The Villans had the option of turning his temporary stint into a permanent one for £40 million but losing to the Red Devils on the final day meant they failed to qualify for the Champions League.

As a result, they could no longer afford the forward’s wage demands and INEOS’ asking price, and the Mancunian returned to United.

The Englishman must have thought it was a blessing in disguise, as he had his eyes on a dream move to Barcelona for over six months.

But with the second week on July now almost coming to an end, the Catalans have still stayed away from submitting a concrete proposal.

The 20-time English league champions have made it clear to the Spanish side that they will not entertain a loan request from them as they were ready to splurge big to land Nico Williams just a few weeks ago.

In good news for the Old Trafford side, other suitors are emerging on the market for the England international — Bayern Munich and now, Juventus.

The Sun have claimed that the Turin-based side have made the Carrington graduate their top priority this summer. The report does not make it clear whether they will offer a permanent deal or a loan offer.

“JUVENTUS have made Marcus Rashford their number one summer target, SunSport understands.

“The Italian giants are accelerating plans to try and secure the Manchester United misfit – who is desperate to force an exit from Old Trafford.

“Juve’s interest comes as Barcelona also make Rashford their No1 target. But Juventus rate Rashford incredibly highly and are desperate to secure the 27-year-old in time for pre-season.

“They are reshaping their team as they bid to wrestle the title off Napoli next term – and Rashford, who ended last season on loan at Aston Villa, is seen as a key part of the rebuild.”

Where that leaves Jadon Sancho, nobody knows. Whether Juve are genuinely interested or whether this is a ploy to get Barca to actually accelerate their plans, only time will tell.

If the report is true, INEOS will be delighted as they will have multiple options on the table for a player they are desperate to move on as Ruben Amorim does not have Marcus Rashford in his plans for the upcoming season.

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