Shock frontrunners 'emerge' as favourites to sign Marcus Rashford with deadline fast approaching to seal Man Utd exit

The future of Marcus Rashford remains in the balance as the end of the January transfer draws near.

Manchester United's home-grown forward is out of favour at Old Trafford under new head coach Ruben Amorim and the Red Devils are reportedly willing to let him leave the club he joined at the age of seven.

Now 27, Rashford has found his playing time limited and his influence on the wane. But a January move away from United might take him to a surprising destination as the opportunity to move to La Liga has dropped down his list of preferences.

According to reports in Spain, Barcelona have been left sore by Rashford electing to remain in the Premier League after the Catalan outfit missed a deadline he'd set to sign him by the middle of the month.

Instead, it's now being reported that West Ham United are the new favourites to secure Rashford's signature after he told Barcelona he's heading for London instead.

Rashford is said to be an admirer of new Hammers manager Graham Potter, particularly in how he deals with his players on a personal level. With West Ham's options up front getting thinner by the week, it's easy to see why Potter and the West Ham recruitment team would be interested in acquiring a proven Premier League forward.

Marcus Rashford has not played for Manchester United since December 12 (Image: Getty)

Rashford's last game for United was December's Europa League fixture at Viktoria Plzen, while he hasn't featured in domestic competition since the Red Devils lost at home to Nottingham Forest on 7th December.

In all, Rashford has played just 1,500 minutes this season including 83 in the Community Shield in August. For a player with 60 international caps and 138 Manchester United goals to his name, that's a pretty clear sign that it's time to leave despite Rashford's contract still having more than three years to run.

Graham Potter pictured in charge of Chelsea (Image: Getty)

Potter needs attacking additions. Crysencio Summerville is on the injury list along with long-term absentees Jarrod Bowen, Michail Antonio and Niclas Fullkrug. The new manager has Danny Ings in reserve but has used Lucas Paqueta and Mohammed Kudus as makeshift strikers since joining the club.