Barcelona willing to offer Man Utd £221k-p/w ace in exchange for Rashford

Manchester United could now reportedly be offered a swap deal for Marcus Rashford which would see him depart Old Trafford in exchange for another forward as soon as the January transfer window.

Man Utd and Rashford on course to part ways

Just weeks into Ruben Amorim’s time in charge of Manchester United, it seems that Rashford’s future lies away from Old Trafford. The Englishman has been left out of the squad for each of his side’s last three games, including the Manchester derby in the Premier League and the Carabao Cup quarter-final against Tottenham.

It comes after he admitted that he felt he needed a new challenge away from the north west.

“For me, personally, I think I’m ready for a new challenge and the next steps”, he told the media, before adding that he felt his best years remained ahead of him.

“I don’t expect my peak to be now. I’ve had nine years so far in the Premier League and that’s taught me a lot, that’s helped me grow as a player and as a person. So I don’t have any regrets from the last nine years. I won’t have any regrets going forward because I take things day by day and sometimes bad things happen, sometimes good things happen. I just try and keep a fine balance.”

For their part, Manchester United are willing to cash in on their homegrown star, who tops their wage bill with a massive £375,000 a week. Of course, that salary will be a major sticking point for any potential suitors, with few clubs on the planet able to afford that on top of what is likely to be a hefty transfer fee for the England international.

However, now one club have reportedly proposed a way out of what threatens to be a prolonged standoff.

Barcelona ready swap offer for Rashford

That is according to a fresh report from Spain, which claims that Barcelona are readying an audacious swap deal in a bid to try and sign Rashford in January.

The report claims that the Blaugrana are ready to offer up their own forward Ansu Fati in exchange for the 27-year-old, and even add that the club have “begun working on negotiations”.

Like Rashford, Fati is out of favour at his club and taking home a hefty salary (£221k per week in his case). Still just 22-years-old, injury and form have seen him start just a single La Liga game this season.

However, he is undoubtedly talented, inheriting Lionel Messi’s shirt at Camp Nou and singled out for praise by former boss Xavi, who dubbed him an “extraordinary” talent after working with him.

Despite this, a deal seems farfetched, especially with Barcelona already struggling with their salary cap to the point where they cannot register summer signing Dani Olmo for the second half of the season as things stand.

Adding Rashford to the mix may only make the situation worse, while United would surely demand a fee on top of the arrival of an injury-plagued Fati for any deal to materialise.