Meet street artist Akse P19 who restored vandalised Marcus Rashford mural

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A mural of Marcus Rashford that was vandalised with racist graffiti has been restored to its former glory by street artist Akse P19.

Based on a photograph by Daniel Cheetham and painted by artist Akse P19, the mural dedicated to the Manchester United star is located on the side of a cafe in Copson Street, Withington, south Manchester.

Alongside a picture of the star's face, the mural read: "Take pride in knowing that your struggle will play the biggest role in your purpose."

The artwork was defaced after Rashford, along with Bukayo Saka and Jadon Sancho, missed crucial penalties as England suffered penalty shootout heartbreak against Italy in the Euro 2020 final.

All three men also suffered horrific racist abuse on social media following the match.

Good-hearted England fans quickly leapt to the defence of their heroes and touching messages of support began to appear on Rashford's mural as supporters took a stand against racist abuse.

And on Tuesday morning, original painter Akse P19 was seen restoring the image as passers-by posed for photos and took a stand against racism.

The Manchester-based street artist has been painting murals since 1992 and places a focus on photo-realistic portraits, as per the depiction of Rashford.

On his website, Akse P19 describes his goal is to: "Bring inspiration to the local community through the subjects I paint."

His sport-related works include murals of Rashford's England team-mates Kalvin Phillips, Jordan Henderson and Harry Maguire plus the likes of Trent Alexander-Arnold, Wayne Rooney, Josh Warrington and Rob Burrow.

Away from sport, Akse P19 has painted Captain Sir Tom Moore, George Floyd, Stephen Hawking, James Brown, Nine Simone, Marvin Gaye and tonnes of other famous faces.

The talented designer has amassed 85,000 Instagram followers and his work has received attention from the BBC, who have featured three of his paintings on their website.

  • Marcus Rashford
  • England Football Team
  • Euro 2020

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