Barcelona are reportedly looking for ways to keep Marcus Rashford without triggering the buyout clause in his loan agreement with Manchester United, according to Spanish media. The 27-year-old England international joined the Catalan club on a season-long loan after a brief stint at Aston Villa.
Since relocating to Spain, Rashford has netted three times and provided five assists across all competitions. It’s believed that Barcelona have the option to make Rashford’s move to the Nou Camp permanent for a fee of £26.2million and there had been reports the La Liga side would look to exercise it.
Sporting director Deco recently clarified that they have the choice to sign Rashford permanently, not as an obligation. Rashford ended a positive spell for Barca by scoring his first La Liga goal against Sevilla over the weekend.
Despite Hansi Flick’s side suffering a 4-1 defeat, Rashford’s strike means he has been involved in nine goals between the two international breaks. Diario Sport now reports that the La Liga champions are reluctant to pay the purchase fee for Rashford next summer. Despite Rashford’s promising performances so far, his long-term future at Barca remains uncertain.
The report suggests that if Rashford continues to impress, Barcelona will attempt to keep him in Spain for the foreseeable future. However, it’s claimed that this is unlikely to happen directly through the £26.2m clause included in the loan deal – instead they will look to drive that fee down or even consider another loan move.
Spanish outlet Mundo Deportivo praised Rashford following his weekend goal, stating he “continues to rise” and is “displaying confidence and commitment”. Journalist Ferran Martinez noted: “His ability to adapt to Hansi Flick’s system has been one of the most positive aspects of recent weeks, despite the fact that the team, which has suffered two consecutive defeats, is not in his favour.”
Rashford is now with the England squad for this month’s double-header against Wales. Thomas Tuchel’s men take on the Dragons on Thursday night before travelling to Latvia next week.
The forward scored in his last game for the Three Lions when they beat Serbia 5-0. Victory in Riga will seal their spot in next summer’s World Cup with two qualifying games to go.
Rashford will be hoping to carry his form at Barcelona to England this week. Earlier this year, his performance against Albania came under scrutiny after struggling to make an impact alongside Phil Foden.
At the time, Tuchel defended the pair, but did admit they weren’t as impactful as expected. “I have spoken to both of them and in front of the group,” Tuchel told BBC Sport.
“They know that I appreciate the effort, especially off the ball. Marcus had a lot of runs when we had the ball where we did not see him, where we did not use him. He was a little bit unlucky maybe with the timing and from time to time we oversaw him.”