Rashford's Barca lifeline: €90m Saudi bid changes everything for Man Utd outcast

News

Tom Weber | Editor

The Saudi Pro League is ready to make a major bid for Barcelona star Raphinha, and the Catalan club's decision could shape the future of Manchester United outcast Marcus Rashford.

The England international remains in limbo over his future. Rashford's loan spell at Barcelona has generally been positive, with the LaLiga champions-elect keen to retain him.

However, Barcelona are unwilling (or unable) to exercise the €30 million purchase option they agreed with Man Utd last summer. This hasn't gone down well with the Red Devils, who insist that there will be no discounts on Rashford.

Various potential solutions are currently being explored. A second loan has been mooted, but again, Man Utd are unlikely to play along. Barcelona are also looking at cheaper wingers on the market.

The prospect of being forced to return to Old Trafford is perhaps not as daunting to Rashford with former teammate Michael Carrick now in charge, but he has been pretty clear that he wants to stay at Barcelona.

Barcelona could sell Raphinha

With Rashford's future in mind, it is interesting that Sacha Tavolieri now reports that Barcelona are braced for a lucrative offer for star winger Raphinha. Saudi Pro League clubs are said to be willing to pay as much as €90 million for the Brazilian.

Raphinha could stand to earn around €30m per season in the Middle East. Nevertheless, it is believed that he is keen to stay in Barcelona, having already previously turned down Saudi money.

However, the situation is made all the more intriguing by Barcelona's stance. Given their financial predicament, only a few players are considered genuinely untouchable: Pau Cubarsi, Pedri and Lamine Yamal.

It is believed that Barcelona will need to make at least one major sale this summer, so they could be tempted to cash in on Raphinha, despite his importance to Hansi Flick. This would, in turn, boost Rashford's chances of staying.

That said, Jules Kounde and various other players have also been touted as potential sacrificial lambs. In other words, there is no guarantee that Barcelona will be receptive to the interest in Raphinha.

The Rashford situation is therefore far from resolved at this stage.

The FootballTransfers app

Check out FootballTransfers' new app for all of football's big storylines, transfer rumours and exclusive news in one convenient place directly on your mobile device.

The FootballTransfers app is available in the Apple App Store. Download here:

•App Store