Marcus Rashford says he’s open to a new challenge - but who can reasonably afford his asking price and astronomical wages?. As a sign of how constrained this January window might be, one mid-level Champions League club briefly considered whether a move for Marcus Rashford might be possible. There was a feeling his comments about leaving Manchester United could lead to a knock-down price… only for their interest to almost immediately be knocked down. The plan to try and enquire about a £30m deal didn’t even get off the ground.
The gap to what United would actually want, which is understood to be beyond £60m, shows how it might take an awful lot to get this market going. One circular problem sums up everything. Most Premier League clubs want to do significant business but PSR has left highly-paid squads with little headroom, and those in Europe just don't have the money to spend. Many of the latter are still struggling after Covid, especially when the English competition so inflates the wage race. As a consequence, almost everyone needs to sell first, but there are few buyers to make that happen. That is the set-up for stagnation, and a market that simply won't move.
Manchester United are a grand illustration of this, as virtually every player has to prove themselves to Ruben Amorim. The club leadership would like to immediately start a huge overhaul of their squad, but it is going to be more difficult than ever to move high-paid players on in a constricted market. United may have to take a wage hit on some loan deals, but the problem is that the club are at a point now where they want a properly clean slate. Temporary deals don't quite cut it to do what they want to do.
