Guardiola named Man Utd player he desperately wanted Man City to sign

Pep Guardiola once told Ryan Giggs that Marcus Rashford was Manchester United's best player and he would "take him tomorrow".

Rashford came through the ranks at Old Trafford, scoring on his debut in 2016, but has gone on to have an inconsistent career on the red side of Manchester. At his best he's produced 30-goal seasons, but equally he's struggled for form and seen his conduct criticised.

After loan spells at Aston Villa and Barcelona he's back at United - and has previously enjoyed stellar moments against City. Before Guardiola arrived he scored the winner at the Etihad and, in 2024, he scored a stunning strike from long range. Across the course of his career Rashford has scored seven times against City - his second best record against any club.

Those exploits have left a mark on Guardiola and, during a dinner that Giggs was present at, the iconic manager waxed lyrical about Rashford and admitted he'd sign him immediately if given the chance.

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Giggs recalled on Rio Ferdinand Presents: "There’s about eight of us, so he [Ferguson] sat me next to Pep, this was about, I’m going to say about eight or nine years ago. I’ve gone to Pep and says, 'you know, who do you like at United?', 'He went, well, who do you think?'

"So I went, De Gea? He went, no. Luke Shaw? I was just like, no. He said the best player at Man United, Marcus Rashford. I would take him tomorrow. And that just made me [think], what’s he seeing Pep? And that was obviously as a centre forward."

The Catalan called time on his ten-year stint at the Etihad this summer following a period of dominance. Recruitment proved key in his success, although the majority of his best buys were those he landed from overseas.

Rarely have top Premier League clubs traded between themselves - and allowing players to move to your direct rivals is rare. The last major deal to take place between the two Manchester sides was when Carlos Tevez moved in 2009, which caused huge controversy.

They have been involved in several transfer battles though and this summer both eyed Elliot Anderson, but the England midfielder always made it clear he wanted to move to the blue side, not red, before making a £116million switch from Nottingham Forest. Giggs admits he tried to persuade Anderson to change his mind, but was quickly snubbed.

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