A mural of Marcus Rashford was defaced on Sunday night in a "racially aggravated" incident after the forward missed a shoot-out penalty for England in the Euro 2020 final defeat to Italy.
Rashford, brought on at right-back during extra time, missed England's third kick after the match went to penalties.
Police are investigating after the mural, on the wall of a cafe in south Manchester, was defaced with derogatory comments about Rashford less than an hour after the shoot-out.
Further graffiti appeared to criticise his prospective future Old Trafford teammate Jadon Sancho, who also missed a penalty as Italy won their first European Championship for 53 years.
Greater Manchester Police said they were alerted to the damage at around 2.50am on Monday, and described the vandalism as "racially aggravated".
"This is disgraceful behaviour and will absolutely not be tolerated," Chief Superintendent Paul Savill said in a statement. "Greater Manchester prides itself on being made up from a number of diverse communities, and hate crime in any form is completely unacceptable and not welcome here in our city.
"GMP takes crimes of this nature very seriously, and an investigation has been launched. If anyone has any information that could help us to identify this offender, please do not hesitate to speak to the police."
The Football Association has released a statement condemning the "disgusting behaviour" of a small number of supporters who aimed racist abuse at players on social media in the wake of England's loss, while Gareth Southgate, the England coach, described racist online posts as "unforgivable".
The artwork was created by Akse, a French-born graffiti artist based in south Manchester, in November last year. It shows Manchester United star Rashford alongside the phrase: "Take pride in knowing that your struggle will play the biggest role in your purpose."
The abuse directed at Rashford is reminiscent of that aimed at David Beckham after he was sent off in England's 1998 World Cup defeat to Argentina. An effigy of Beckham was strung up amid the backlash to the red card, which saw him booed and jeered by opposition fans throughout the 1998/99 season.
Separate artwork depicting Rashford kicking down the door of 10 Downing Street is located on Canal Street in Manchester.
The forward won praise last summer after he convinced the Government to make an about-turn on its free school meals policy, which led to his End Child Food Poverty campaign.
