Marcus Rashford giving Barcelona transfer dilemma
Although it’s not been a vintage campaign so far for Barcelona by any means, there have been a handful of positives for Hansi Flick and the board to chew over.
Not least the most surprising of all, the productive form of Marcus Rashford.
The 28-year-old cut a forlorn figure at Old Trafford under Ruben Amorim, to the point where you wondered if the England international was ever going to rediscover his best form.
When it was announced that Barca were taking him on loan with an option, not an obligation, to buy, eyebrows were certainly raised.
However, the structure of the deal always afforded the Catalans a win-win. Perform as expected and Flick could send him packing with a polite ‘thanks but no thanks.’
Exceed expectations, and the club were in pole position to hire Rashford permanently, for below market value.
The latter scenario has most definitely occurred, and to date, in 23 matches in all competitions, the wide man has come up with a more than acceptable seven goals and eight assists.
It isn’t just his output that already means the club could have a real conundrum come the end of the season, either, as he’s certainly given the squad something different.
Where once at United he was lackadaisical in possession or hunting down the opposition, since joining the Blaugranes he has been purposeful, direct and ready to fight for every ball.
He has more than justified his place in the team, whether as a starter or an impact sub, and – at worst – as a back-up to Lamine Yamal and Raphinha, he offers a significant presence.
Don’t forget too that he has played as the main striker at United with reasonable success. If both Ferran and Lewandowski (or any replacement) were to get injured, there’s no reason to think Rashford couldn’t be utilised in the middle of a front three.
There’s just one major sticking point to any permanent move, of course, and the elephant in the room can’t be ignored.
Barcelona do have other priorities in the squad, particularly in defence, and with finances getting better but still not where they need to be, the club may not be able to afford him.
Even for a reported €30m/€35m (£26m/30m) fee, Deco is going to be hard-pressed to factor that into any transfer spend next summer.
Realistically, the two options that the club has are that they try and renegotiate the purchase price, knowing that United don’t want him, or allow him to leave with their good wishes and hope he doesn’t have a sensational World Cup that leaves Barca regretting their decision.
Source: barcablaugranes.com
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