The England forward is keen to leave United this summer and has expressed a desire to play with the Catalan giants but Sheringham doesn't feel that his performances on the pitch merit such a big move.

The former striker – who won the Treble with the Red Devils in 1999 – told Sky Bet: "If you assess where Marcus Rashford is at as a professional footballer, you strive as a youngster to get to the very top and play for clubs like Manchester United, and when you're there, you appreciate it. You don't throw it away and say you want to leave.

"I find the whole episode very soul-destroying, compared to the way I was back in the day and how I strove to get the privilege to play for such a huge football club."

Sheringham continued: "To hear someone talking the way he is talking, saying he wants out – I didn't like Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang doing that at Arsenal, I thought it was soul-destroying, and I hope Rashford doesn't get the move that he's hankering for.

"From my perspective, if you go from Manchester United to Barcelona, that's a step up that he hasn't deserved."

Rashford is one of five players to have been surplus to requirements by United and Sheringham believes that his old clubs will have to accept financial losses on those who are set to leave.

He said: "It's very easy to spend money on players, but it's hard to recoup it.

"It seems quiet, but I bet there's lots going on behind the scenes at Manchester United. Other clubs know United's position.

"They've made it known that they're looking to sell around five players, which signals to other clubs to make them ridiculous offers.

"I would assume that's what football clubs are doing around Europe, and Manchester United are turning them down at the moment.

"The longer that goes on, I reckon those offers might be a little less ridiculous, but United want these players off the books – they've made their bed and they've got to lie in it.

"They'll probably take anything from a quarter to a fifth of the asking price for some of them."