Manchester United Have Rashford Contract ‘Problem’ Because of Cristiano Ronaldo

Manchester United are are struggling with Marcus Rahford’s contract renewal and has been told they could have been the masters of their own downfall by introducing the ‘Cristiano Ronaldo rule’ to limit player contracts.

With Marcus Rashford’s current deal expiring next year, United are under growing pressure to offer acceptable terms for an extension.

Erik ten Hag reportedly doesn’t want any player earning over £200,000 per week after informing David de Gea that he must slice his £375,000-a-week wage or leave the club as a free agent in July.

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Ten Hag has worked with Richard Arnold and John Murtough to implement the rule to ensure there is no longer a jealous culture in the dressing room after terminating Ronaldo’s £480,000-a-week deal.

But with Rashford currently earning £200,000 per week and in the form of his career, there have been concerns over whether United may need to make an exception to offer a well-deserved pay rise.

According to Gabby Agbonlahor,  the ‘Ronaldo rule’ could be a problem in contract negotiations with the on-fire No 10.

He said: “I think the big problem is the rumour of the ‘Ronaldo clause’. If the Ronaldo clause is there, then there are going to be exceptions.

“Because if they want to keep Marcus Rashford, he’s going to be the best-paid player with the club.

“So, they’re going to have to pay Rashford probably £350k [per week] for him to stay, and he’s got every right because the form he’s been in, he deserves to be the highest paid.

“Attackers are always better paid than midfielders. (Mohamed) Salah is on similar money to Kevin De Bruyne, so with the numbers that Rashford’s putting in, his agents are going to say, ‘you give it all, or we go’.”

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Paris Saint-Germain have been strongly linked with an interest in Rashford in recent years, with club chiefs publicly admitting they would like to lure him to the French capital.

And Agbonlahor claims the 24-year-old could walk into any team in Europe on current form, potentially replacing Kylian Mbappe at PSG next summer.

“It’s hard to choose a club that you could go to because, for me, he could go to any. The form he’s in, pace, finishing both feet, free kicks, the form he’s in, he goes anywhere,” Agbonlahor added.

“Mbappe might end up leaving. Could he be the replacement for Mbappe at PSG? There are so many options for Rashford that the Ronaldo clause might get put on hold until Rashford goes on the new deal.”