Marcus Rashford has returned to Manchester United’s starting XI as a number nine for the first time in 626 days, beginning the Premier League meeting with Ipswich in the competition’s second round.
The England forward’s selection marks his first start for Manchester United since 13 December 2024, when he featured from the beginning of an away Europa League fixture against Viktoria Plzen. Rashford played 56 minutes in that match before being replaced by Rasmus Højlund.
Rashford wore Manchester United’s number 10 shirt at the time of his last start for the club. He has since been assigned the number nine jersey, and his return to the starting line-up against Ipswich came in that role.
His most recent Premier League start for Manchester United was earlier in December 2024. Rashford began the 4-0 victory over Everton on 1 December and scored twice during the match.
The appearance against Ipswich therefore represents a significant return to the first-team line-up for Rashford, whose previous club start had come in European competition rather than the Premier League. His last league start had also ended with a decisive contribution, as he found the net on two occasions against Everton.
Manchester United’s decision to select Rashford as the central attacking option provides the clearest indication in the match line-up of his current shirt number and position. Having previously started in the number 10 role, he now leads the side as number nine for the meeting with Ipswich.
The match is Manchester United’s fixture in the second round of the Premier League, with Rashford’s inclusion the central team-news development. It is also the first time in 626 days that he has been named in the club’s starting XI, according to the source article.
Rashford’s previous starting appearances provide the relevant timeline: he last began a match for Manchester United in the 2-1 away Europa League game against Viktoria Plzen on 13 December 2024, while his most recent Premier League start came 12 days earlier in the 4-0 home victory against Everton.
The forward’s return is accompanied by the change from number 10 to number nine. In the Viktoria Plzen match, Rashford was still wearing Manchester United’s number 10 shirt before later being reassigned the number nine.
AF’s PC site is now live, offering full news, comments, match details and statistics on computers. It can be accessed at www.allfootballapp.com.
