As recently reported, David Seaman spoke to The Good, The Bad & The Football and suggested that Arsenal should sign Marcus Rashford. The England attacker has competed with Anthony Gordon for a starting spot on the left wing, after a season-long loan at Barcelona.
The Spanish giants decided not to make the move permanent, favouring Rashford’s England colleague Gordon. Seaman said Arsenal would likely have to sell either Gabriel Martinelli or Leandro Trossard if they did end up signing Rashford.
Do Arsenal need Rashford?
As Seaman alluded to whether the team needs another attacker is debatable. Arsenal are already favourites for the Premier League title, according to Premier League betting at 10bet and the odds at many other bookmakers. After their first league title in 22 years, Mikel Arteta’s side are backed to retain the trophy. Arsenal also reached the Champions League final in 2025-2026, only narrowly losing to PSG, but some critics suggested more depth could be the difference.
Rashford’s place in the England team has not been certain. He did not complete 90 minutes in the first four World Cup games and Anthony Gordon, taking Rashford’s place on the hour mark against DR Congo, helped Harry Kane turn the game around. But Seaman likes Rashford for good reason: he scored around a goal every three full matches for Barcelona in LaLiga, a respectable return for a player who was in and out of the side. Rashford’s ratio was better in the Champions League, where he scored 5 goals in 11 matches.
Throughout his career, the question has rarely been about quality but more so consistency. Some have questioned Rashford’s decision making and accused him of being one-dimensional, but if that one dimension is scoring goals then Arteta may not be too concerned. Rashford’s best goalscoring seasons were in 2019-2020 and 2022-2023, recording 17 in each of those for United. 2020-2021 was another notable campaign as Rashford reached his highest-ever assist tally (9), also notching 11 goals.
Rashford’s versatility
Barcelona signed Rashford partly because of his ability to play across the front line. While he wasn’t often used on the right by United, he did enjoy a good spell of form there and his crossing is arguably better from that side as he gets more pace on the ball without cutting in. Hansi Flick was a vocal fan of Rashford and used him in all three positions up front.
Rashford is unlikely to displace Viktor Gyokeres as the main central striker; Martinelli’s goal return was similar to Rashford’s despite the Brazilian rarely starting; Trossard has shown his quality again for Belgium; and Bukayo Saka is never going to lose his place on the right. Seaman may be right in suggesting that if Rashford is to come in, Martinelli or Trossard would likely have to depart. Arsenal also have Gabriel Jesus who, if he remains at the club, would want to feature far more than in 2025-2026.
Rashford’s most successful periods came when he was playing on the left for United. He generally does best on fast counters but given that almost every opponent plays a low block against Arsenal, the space behind defences would be limited. He could be a useful sub when Arsenal are already ahead and opposition sides start opening up in search of an equaliser. But whether Rashford will want to warm the bench, and likely take a pay cut from his reported £325,000 per week (triggered by United qualifying for the Champions League), is questionable.
Arsenal are reportedly open to letting Jesus leave but want around £20 million. The Brazilian has 64 national team caps and is still in his 20s. His injury record may put off potential suitors – a possible concern regarding Rashford, too. Jesus has previously told Gazzetta dello Sport that he grew up watching Serie A and dreamed of playing in Italy. Jesus scored two goals against Inter and said that game was like a dream come true. He has also said he wants to return to Brazil someday.
The Athletic reported in late June that United were undecided on whether to recruit a new left-sided attacker. Part of that decision, of course, rests on whether Rashford stays. The club wish to avoid a third loan (Rashford previously had a spell with Aston Villa), but the 28-year-old was reportedly not targeted by any teams of a level to tempt him away from Manchester. Seaman might want Rashford to join Arsenal, but so far there is no real indication that the club are considering a move.
