Manchester United star Marcus Rashford issues statement amid impending 'tabloid story'

Marcus Rashford has issued a statement in which he claims a tabloid newspaper plans to publish a photograph of him with a controversial "rapper".

The Manchester United star took to social media to claim he had been contacted about the image ahead of an impending story. In a statement on his Instagram account this evening, Rashford denied having seen the picture before, and said he "does not know" the rapper.

The post is understood to relate to Jake Fahri, who murdered schoolboy Jimmy Mizen in 2008. A report in The Sun has claimed that TEN, a balaclava-clad drill rapper whose music boasts about killing a man, and who has been played on BBC 1Xtra, is in fact 35-year-old Fahri.

Fahri was released from prison in June 2023 after serving 14 years of his life sentence for the horrific murder.

In his Instagram story, Rashford wrote: "Been contacted today by a tabloid informing me that they plan to publish a photo of me with a rapper apparently taken over a year ago.

"I want to make it clear I have never seen this photo, I do not know this person, and I am not friends with him. Like most footballers if someone asks for a photo with me, I will never refuse but I am obviously not able to do a background check on every individual that asks me for a photo.

"Can I please urge the tabloids rather than focusing on me, to use their platforms to help raise positive awareness on the many charities and individuals that work daily throughout the UK to tackle knife crime to prevent more families suffering tragic loss. My deepest sympathy goes to the family of Jimmy Mizen."

Fahri, then aged 19, attacked Jimmy Mizen at a London bakery in May 2008, grabbing a glass baking dish before smashing it into the youngster's face. The attack left Jimmy