For much of the January transfer window, it seemed inevitable that Marcus Rashford would finally be leaving Manchester United - the only question would be if it was permanent or temporary.

Now, with just a weekend separating us from deadline day, Rashford's future looks to be in Manchester at least until the summer. MEN Sport understands Barcelona are reluctant to sign the winger on loan in January and would prefer to make the deal at the end of the season.

This is undoubtedly a hammer blow for Rashford after a move to AC Milan also fell through earlier in the window. For United, they now need to have a solid Plan B.

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Everyone will be aware that it is simply untenable for United to keep Rashford on the fringes of the squad until the summer. When Jadon Sancho had his bust-up with Erik ten Hag, the situation was at boiling point from September until the Reds could finally part ways with him the following January.

When it seemed like Sancho had nowhere to go, even Ten Hag conceded that the best course of action would be to shake hands and draw a line. They did that to keep the peace, and, eventually, the move to Chelsea was secured.

From Ruben Amorim's perspective, he may now have to row back on his damning criticism of Rashford just to mend that bridge if he is going to be around the building until the summer at least. From Rashford's perspective, he could still leave Old Trafford if he was not willing to accept an olive branch.

The Manchester Evening News understands Rashford has previously rejected a move to Turkey, but their transfer window is open a week longer. Victor Osimhen was forced into a loan to Galatasaray when a deal could not be negotiated for him in the summer, and his bridges were firmly burnt in Napoli.

It is not ideal for Rashford, but if he approached it like Osimhen has, he could work it in his favour. The striker's stock still remains high in Turkey, and it is likely he will earn a move to a top European club in the summer after a confidence-boosting stint in Istanbul.

However, everyone becomes a loser if Amorim and Rashford cannot resolve some sort of plan and this temporary exclusion is extended until the end of the season. For the United head coach, the last thing he wants is an unhappy player in the camp that could threaten the atmosphere in the squad, which is starting to grow in confidence after three wins in a row.

Rashford, meanwhile, cannot afford to have his reputation besmirched any further by sulking outside of the first-team squad. The best solution for both parties would be to agree to a truce until the end of the season if an exit can't be resolved before Monday, but things could turn nuclear if that's not an option.