‘Telling Me’—Anthony Gordon Reveals Marcus Rashford’s Response to Barcelona Transfer

Gordon’s move to Barcelona has only added to the uncertainty facing Rashford.

Anthony Gordon (left) joined Barcelona this summer. | Mike Hewitt/Eric Alonso/Getty Images

New Barcelona signing Anthony Gordon has revealed Marcus Rashford has been offering tips about life in the city in the aftermath of his move to Catalonia.

While hesitating over triggering a $35 million (€30 million) purchase clause for Manchester United loanee, Barcelona wasted little time in striking a deal to sign Gordon from Newcastle United for $81.6 million (€70 million).

Given the two players occupy similar positions on the pitch for both club and country, Gordon’s move to Barcelona has only added to questions about Rashford’s continuation at Camp Nou after a successful loan spell that yielded 14 goals and 14 assists across all competitions.

Some have suggested the pair’s mutual time with England this summer could be a little awkward, but Gordon was quick to dismiss any rumors.

“He was just telling me how good the lads are there, the team spirit that they have, which I heard already from the people in Barça,” Gordon told talkSPORT.

“So I’m really looking forward to joining up with them. He was also telling me about the city, places to live.

“He’s a lovely guy, very caring. So he was just giving me a bit of information.”

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What’s the Latest on Rashford’s Future?

Rashford heads to the World Cup with his future unclear. | Eddie Keogh/The FA/Getty Images

The sentiment coming out of Barcelona is there remains an interest in retaining Rashford, who has made it abundantly clear he is focused solely on extending his stay with the La Liga champions.

Finances are at the heart of the issue. Barcelona, despite clearly having sufficient funds, are thought to be reluctant to trigger their purchase clause, for which they have until June 15 to do so. After that point, Rashford will have to return to United.

Given United’s desire to offload Rashford and his mammoth wages, Barcelona have been trying to strike a deal well below their $35 million clause, with some reports suggesting the Blaugrana are going as low as half that figure, believing United will be forced to accept a cut-price offer.

While United are known to be keen to offload Rashford, the Red Devils have long stressed they will not negotiate over a deal which is already widely accepted to be a bargain in a market in which Gordon can command a fee over twice as high.

There have been recent suggestions that United may be flexible, albeit not to such a drastic extent, with the idea of a second loan deal not thought to be off the table if the terms satisfy both parties.

Negotiations will continue up until the June 15 deadline, at which point United will encourage other offers. The Red Devils expect plenty of interest in Rashford and are confident a bidding war could see them earn more than the sum offered to Barcelona, although other suitors will almost certainly look to drive United’s asking price as low as possible.

Even if the deadline passes, Barcelona can still negotiate a deal with United—the key difference being the Premier League outfit would be under no obligation to accept any offers from Barça.

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