Man United and Barcelona are having conflicts surrounding the Marcus Rashford deal. Last season, the English striker played quite well in the Camp Nou team's colors on loan. It was thought that Barca would buy Rashford outright for 30 million Euros, but in the end they bought Anthony Gordon for up to 80 million Euros, meaning they no longer needed the "Red Devils" star.
By this time, the deadline for buying Rashford outright has passed. Currently, a plan is appearing that Barca will continue to borrow Rashford for another season, but this is not what Man United wants. The Old Trafford team will not return to the negotiating table just to discuss a loan deal for Rashford. Man United's dissatisfaction with Barcelona's behavior may put the Alejandro Balde deal in a dead end.
Man United's next priority after signing Carlos Baleba is a left-back. Last season, Luke Shaw played a full 38 matches in the Premier League, but looking at the injury history of the English star, no one believes Shaw can play with an intensity of 2-3 matches/week, in a season Man United is back in the Champions League.
Man United once targeted Lewis Hall of Newcastle, but the deal went into a dead end because the "Magpies" decided not to sell after a summer that had parted ways with too many key players. Therefore, Man United was forced to change direction and the name Balde has since appeared more in transfer rumors.
Barcelona currently owns Joao Cancelo and Xavi Espart, who can play as left-backs. Last week, Balde was also not included in Barcelona's registered squad, raising doubts about his departure from the team. However, captain Hansi Flick said that the reason for not including the 22-year-old defender is because Balde needs time to calm down after rumors about the future are making things complicated.
News from Barcelona all outlines the prospect that Balde will leave Camp Nou this summer, but from Man United it is not so optimistic. Man United does not want to accept Barca's requests to continue loaning Rashford. Meanwhile, Barca may also make it difficult for Man United in the Balde deal. Neither side is willing, so everything is falling into a deadlock.
Barca's point of view on the Balde deal is not to loan him out, if any team buys, the price will be around 30 million pounds. Even a loan contract with a buyout clause for Balde was rejected by Barca, they only want to sell this star if there is a transfer offer.
Man United still wants to have Lewis Hall and is expected to restart this deal in the summer of 2027. Therefore, it is very unlikely that they will invest in the Balde deal with a large amount of money. Hiring Balde will be a reasonable move, but why should Barcelona concede when Man United did not do so in the Rashford deal?
In terms of pre-determined principles, Man United is going in the right direction in the Rashford case. Right from the beginning when pushing the English star to Camp Nou, the "Red Devils" maintained the view that Barca must buy it outright after the loan term expires or nothing at all.
Conversely, on Barca's side, they also have a valid reason not to want Balde to leave on loan. The young star's contract with the Catalan team is only 2 years left, so if Balde leaves Camp Nou, selling out is the best option. If Barcelona lets Balde go to Man United on loan for the whole season, he will enter the last year of his contract when he returns. This reduces the transfer value and puts the club in a difficult position in any discussion about selling Balde later.
That is why Barcelona wants to sell Balde outright, but Man United's transfer budget for the left-back position next summer will be narrowed if they accept Barca's request. Lewis Hall is still the ultimate goal and the "Red Devils" need to focus money on that goal.
