Aston Villa will be looking to sign an alternative to Marcus Rashford as the Manchester United forward won't be joining permanently this summer.Aston Villa will be looking to sign an alternative to Marcus Rashford as the Manchester United forward won't be joining permanently this summer.
Aston Villa will be looking to sign an alternative to Marcus Rashford as the Manchester United forward won't be joining permanently this summer. | Getty Images
Marcus Rashford isn’t expected to join Aston Villa despite a successful loan spell at Villa Park.
Rashford had success under Unai Emery, scoring four goals and providing six assists in 17 appearances at Villa. He had a £40m buy option in his loan deal with Villa, however, it seems as though the English side aren’t going to sign him permanently.
Rashford’s £40m fee “not the problem” for Villa
Many were surprised to see Villa pass on Rashford after his spell with the club, with many suggesting that it could be because they didn’t want to pay £40m, or the attacker didn’t want to stay at Villa Park.
Former Aston Villa striker Gabby Agbonlahor however, believes that it is Rashford’s wage demands that put the Premier League club off signing him from Man United.
He said on talkSPORT: “Certain players want to play Champions League football and you can't attract the players that want that. Marcus Rashford has already said he wants Champions League football.
“Budget wise, because of missing out on the money from the Champions League then you need to sell more players than you'd want to.
"The main reason why I don't feel he will come is because you are going to upset the changing room. If you are Ollie Watkins or Ezri Konsa and Rashford comes in on £300,000 a week, then you are saying 'I want £300,000 a week. That is what happens in changing rooms. The £40m is not the problem, it is the wages."
However, if Rashford’s wage demands are a problem for Villa, it could be unlikely that Barcelona will afford him either as the club are in a precarious position with regards to their finances.
This means that the Spanish club could push for a loan deal, something that Man United reportedly don’t consider to be an option. They need money for their transfer budget this summer, and so Barcelona may also not be the destination for Rashford, despite his desire to move there.
What have Barcelona said about a Rashford move?
If wage demands are the issue, then the questions raised about a Rashford to Barcelona deal would be whether the England international would be prepared to reduce his demands in order to get his ‘dream’ move to the La Liga giants.
According to Spanish outlet Mundo Deportivo, Rashford would be willing to reduce his wages to move to Barcelona, and that his representatives have told the Spanish club that fact.
Furthermore, Barcelona manager Hansi Flick was recently asked about Rashford, alongside Liverpool winger Luis Diaz, who they have also been linked with. He played down any speculation, but was quick to praise the pair.
Flick told the media: "I don't want to speak about players which are not in my team, but of course Luis Diaz and Marcus Rashford are fantastic players. I like them and we'll see what happens.”
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