A MURAL of Marcus Rashford that was vandalised with graffiti is “not believed to be of a racial nature,” say police.

The artwork in Withington, south Manhchester was sprayed with offensive language after England lost in the Euro 2020 final against Italy on Sunday 11 July.

Police were called to the scene at around 2.50am the next day July to reports of “racially-aggravated damage of a mural on Copson Street in Withinton”.

Officers say they have several lines of inquiry and are “keeping an open mind” about the possible motive.

The mural was covered in positive messages in the form of notes and cards after the vandalism and has now been restored by street artist Akse.

In a statement, a police spokesperson said: “The damage was removed and the mural was restored by its artist in the following days, as an investigation was launched by detectives from our City of Manchester South division.“While the content of the vandalism is not believed to be of a racial nature, officers are keeping an open mind as to the motive behind the defacing the artwork.

“No arrests have been made and we continue to appeal to members of the public for any information they may have from Sunday night into Monday morning.”

Greater Manchester Police officers are now analysing CCTV footage from the area and forensic evidence from the spray paint used, however, no arrests have been made.

Supt Richard Timson added: “On Monday morning when we saw the damage done to the mural in Withington we were all left appalled, and we stand with the rest of the community whose solidarity against this vile abuse ever since has really shown the best of our city.

“The person responsible for this knows who they are and we believe there will be others who also suspect the identity of this offender, and I therefore urge anyone with such information to get in touch to help progress our enquiries at speed.”

England players Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Bukayo Saka all were subject to online racist abuse after missing their penalties on Sunday’s match.

The mural of Rashford was targeted with swear words moments after he missed his penalty.

Over the last few days, the mural has been swamped with heartfelt messages of support for Rashford and his teammates following social media abuse and an anti-racism protest was held at the site earlier this week.

Following the outpouring from fans, Rashford said he was “lost for words” at the support he had received.