After joining Barcelona on loan from Manchester United last summer, Marcus Rashford received quite a lot of positive feedback from fans and experts.
Many opinions believe that the English striker really wants to stick with the Catalan team for a long time. That is also understandable, because Barcelona is always a dream destination for many players. However, the bigger question lies with the Camp Nou team when they really want to buy Rashford outright or not.
Coach Hansi Flick has praised this player a lot, describing him as a good choice thanks to his finishing ability and versatility in attack. However, in reality Rashford is still not a regular choice in the starting lineup.
In La Liga this season, Rashford started 14 out of Barcelona's 27 matches, scoring 4 goals and having 8 assists. In the UEFA Champions League, he started 4/9 matches, contributing 5 goals and 4 assists.
At Copa del Rey, Rashford has 1 goal and 1 assist after 3 starts. Meanwhile, in the Spanish Super Cup, he only came on as a substitute in two matches against Athletic Bilbao and Real Madrid.
Overall, Rashford played quite effectively in Spain, but has not really created a big enough impression to make Barcelona immediately activate a buyout clause worth about 26 million pounds.
Another factor that could affect Barca's decision is Thomas Tuchel. The England national team head coach is said to highly appreciate Rashford and is almost certain to call him up for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
If Rashford shines at the World Cup, the price of 26 million pounds could become a bargain for Barcelona. However, the financial situation and political factors in the transfer policy of the Catalan team make Rashford's future still unclear.
In case the buyout deal does not happen, Rashford's return to Man United is also not impossible. Coach Michael Carrick has always appreciated this striker, and if a new era is opened at Old Trafford, Rashford can completely see it as an opportunity to start over.
It has been more than a decade since Rashford debuted for Man United's first team with a double in the victory over Midtjylland in the 2016 UEFA Europa League. However, with not yet turning 29 until October, the English striker still has many years at the peak of his form ahead.
Barcelona President Joan Laporta recently said that the Catalan team is still considering many options related to Rashford's future.
According to Laporta, Barcelona can completely choose to continue to borrow the English striker instead of immediately activating the buyout clause from Man United.
We can extend Rashford's loan contract further. That depends on what Sporting Director Deco wants" - Laporta shared.
He also revealed that Barcelona is considering various financial structures to complete the deal, in the context that the club still has to balance its budget.
There are options, such as paying a part of the buyout fee to Man United first, then calculating and paying the rest at the appropriate time" - Laporta added.
This statement shows that Barcelona is still very interested in Rashford, but the team wants to be cautious in their final decision, especially when the financial situation is still a big problem at Camp Nou.
