Williams plays INEOS the perfect assist in summer mission to move on £40m forward – report

What an assist Nico Williams has just provided INEOS in their summer quest to offload Marcus Rashford.

For a while, Williams was seen as the villain in Rashford’s dream move to Barcelona.

Considered surplus to requirements in Ruben Amorim’s Manchester United project, the number 10 was expected to leave Old Trafford this summer.

Open to ending his time at his boyhood club, the 27-year-old is reportedly keen on joining Barca.

He had even gone so far as to assure the Catalan giants that he was willing to make financial sacrifices to see the deal through.

The Nico Williams factor

But when Barcelona were handed the chance to secure their top left-wing target in Williams, they hesitated (on signing Rashford).

It emerged that the Athletic Club winger had told Barca sporting director Deco that he was willing to join in this window and would accept the wage offer they offered him last summer.

For days, whispers of a San Mamés-to-Camp Nou switch lingered, with Deco understood to be working behind the scenes to finance the move.

Potential uncomfortable sales of Ronald Araujo and Fermin Lopez were even floated.

Then came the plot twist on Friday, 4 July.

Williams signs a new 10-year contract with Athletic Club, a deal that sees him get a pay rise and a 50% increase on his €58 million (£50 million) release clause.

🚨❤️🤍 BREAKING: Nico Williams signs new long term deal at Athletic Club until June 2035!

The agreement includes new release clause for +50% compared to €58m previous one and salary increase.

⛔️ Barcelona deal OFF due to registration issues. pic.twitter.com/Ew5odMQqzL

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) July 4, 2025

That effectively ended Barcelona’s pursuit of the Spanish winger and forced them to reassess their summer transfer plans.

While Mundo Deportivo claims the club may return for Luis Díaz, Liverpool have made it clear he isn’t for sale. Bayern Munich, who also recently approached the Reds for the winger, got the same answer.

Enter: Rashford

Both Mundo Deportivo and talkSPORT suggest that Williams’ renewal has significantly boosted Rashford’s chances of landing his dream move to Barcelona.

“Rashford has no future at United under Ruben Amorim, but talkSPORT understands he is expected to return to training on Monday to play a full part in pre-season,” read the talkSPORT report – although reports breaking since have clarified that he has been given extra time off.

“Joining Barcelona would be his dream move, and his chances of this becoming a reality have been boosted by Williams’ new contract.”

Now, all eyes are on whether Barca will approach United for Rashford.

But if they want him, they will need to act fast.

Bayern vs Barca: The Rashford Derby?

Bayern, like Barcelona, had targeted Williams as a top winger signing.

With all hope on that deal dead and buried, they will be considering their options.

Notably, reports relayed by The Peoples Person revealed that the German champions have also identified Rashford as a solution to their left-wing woes.

Gossip spreads fast…

With murmurs that Barcelona are actively weighing up a swoop for the United academy graduate, a sudden move from Bayern in this pursuit would come as no surprise.

INEOS may have good reason to be hopeful of resolving the situation quickly.

Williams’ rejection of the elite has revived Rashford’s anticipated £40 million exit.

A Barcelona–Bayern tug-of-war for Rashford would be welcomed; that is precisely the kind of drama United fans would happily tune in for.

Featured image Warren Little via Getty Images

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