Barcelona ‘Want’ Permanent Marcus Rashford Deal, Man Utd’s Stance After Ruben Amorim Exit

The terms of Rashford’s season-long loan at Barcelona reportedly include a €30 million buyout clause.

Marcus Rashford has made his wishes very clear. / Jose Breton/Pics Action/NurPhoto/Getty Images

Barcelona reportedly want to extend the stay of Manchester United loanee Marcus Rashford beyond the current season, a decision which would suit the Premier League outfit.

Rashford joined Barça on loan over the summer after he was firmly frozen out of his boyhood club by Ruben Amorim. The 28-year-old went through a brief adaptation process, notably getting hooked at half time in his first start for the club. Yet, it has largely been an encouraging campaign for a rare English ex-pat in Catalonia.

The first male England international to play for Barcelona since Gary Lineker in the 1980s has chipped in with a very respectable seven goals and eight assists across all competitions. Only two of his new teammates—Lamine Yamal and Fermín López—can better that haul.

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Initially benefitting from injuries to several members of Barcelona’s frontline, the versatile forward is not yet a guaranteed starter when everyone is fit. Rashford was among the substitutes when Hansi Flick’s side thumped Athletic Club in the Spanish Super Cup semifinal on Wednesday and is not expected to be included from the first whistle in Sunday’s final against Real Madrid.

Nevertheless, Barcelona have seen enough. The Athletic were one of several outlets to report that the Catalan giants are keen to keep Rashford for longer than the length of his temporary stay, which ends with the current season in June.

The terms of this deal are thought to include a release clause worth €30 million (£26 million, $34.9 million) which represents a considerable discount on the sums that other suitors were being quoted to buy Rashford permanently last summer.

Marcus Rashford is loving life in Catalonia. / Alex Caparros/Getty Images

The report doesn’t explicitly state that Barcelona are prepared to trigger this condition, just that they want Rashford on the books for the 2026–27 campaign. How they go about that could be typically creative.

The reigning La Liga champions are very much beholden to a strict financial regime. As manager Flick recently explained: “The truth is, the club can’t pay hundreds of millions for a new player, like other teams, so we have to be smart with our players.” What form this ingenuity takes remains to be seen, whether it be haggling over Rashford’s price or even requesting another loan.

Barcelona have the advantage of Rashford’s undiluted desire to remain in Spain. As recently as late December, the United academy graduate reiterated: “Of course, what I want is to stay at Barça.”

It appears that even though Rashford’s chief nemesis has left United, the club hold the same opinion.

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Ruben Amorim Not Alone in Man Utd Disappointment With Rashford—Report

Marcus Rashford didn’t click with Ruben Amorim. / Justin Setterfield/Getty Images

Amorim may have been the one to drop Rashford before the first Manchester derby of the 2024–25 season and never give him another minute for United. It may also have been Amorim who claimed he would rather name his 63-year-old goalkeeping coach Jorge Vital on the bench instead of Rashford, who was then banned from United’s training ground until the coach had left for the day during the summer window.

However, this was not one of Amorim’s solo causes. The Athletic claims that “United as a club” shared the coach’s desire for “more application” from Rashford.

Even though Amorim has been sacked, it does not appear that though those remaining in positions of power at United have softened their view on the club’s most successful academy product of the modern era.

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