Pedri among 3 Barcelona stars who stood up against club signing Marcus Rashford in January transfer window: Reports

What could have been one of the biggest stories of the January transfer window was nipped in the bud before it could even be discussed. Manchester United star Marcus Rashford was expected to go to Barcelona on loan, but several stars of the latter club, including Pedri, stood up to ensure that it did not happen, as per The Sun.

Rashford's £325,000-a-week wages eventually proved to be too much for La Blaugrana, especially since United wanted them to cover at least 70 percent of it. The 27-year-old then joined Aston Villa after manager Unai Emery reportedly called him up and spoke about the exciting project on hand.

However, it is worth noting that several key Barcelona players stood up to their management to refuse Rashford to come to Camp Nou (or the Olympic Stadium, where they are currently playing). It was reported that Barca would have needed to sell both Andreas Christensen and Ansu Fati to free up the wage packet for Rashford, and this did not go down well in the dressing room.

While both Christensen and Fati refused to leave, their friends Pedri, Gavi, and Ronald Araujo too stood up to the club and made their feelings known. Interestingly, all three had signed new contract extensions in the final days of the January window, and hence, used their bargaining power over the club.

Interestingly, the club hierarchy listened to their players and backed out of the deal with Manchester United. Pedri has made 34 appearances in total for Barcelona this season, scoring four goals and bagging five assists. Gavi, who has currently sustained a head injury, has made 21 appearances for the club this season.

Araujo, meanwhile, has played just seven matches for Barcelona across all competitions in this campaign. However, the centre-back has managed to score a goal and bag an assist in his limited appearances. The trio are among manager Hansi Flick's most important players in the ongoing campaign.

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Barcelona have not missed out on much by not signing Marcus Rashford on loan

Rashford, who was made an outcast by Manchester United's new head coach Ruben Amorim, eventually went on loan to Aston Villa with the option of a £40million permanent move in the summer. The England international scored just seven goals and bagged three assists in the 24 appearances that he made for United this season.

Rashford did not have a good season in 2023-24 either, where he scored just eight goals in 43 appearances across all competitions. Although he had broken major barriers in 2022-23 by scoring 30 goals in 56 matches, 2021-22 was equally forgettable for him when he scored a mere five goals in 32 matches.

Hence, Barcelona will not be too worried by the loss of a potential prolific goalscorer. They will, instead, focus on building their squad and working at retaining the momentum they have in La Liga, where they are third.

Most recently, they cruised into the semifinal of the Copa del Rey by beating Valencia 5-0 on Thursday, February 6.