Barcelona chief Deco explains why Marcus Rashford ‘suffered’ at Manchester United | OneFootball

Barcelona’s sporting director Deco has suggested Marcus Rashford ‘suffered’ at Manchester United because he was burdened with excessive responsibility too young. 

The 28-year-old is currently on loan at the Catalan club, who have the option to make the move permanent in the summer. 

The forward has made an impressive start to life in Catalunya, netting six goals and creating nine assists in 18 appearances across all competitions. 

Deco has suggested that Rashford was compelled to shoulder a lot of responsibility at United despite being ‘too young’. 

He told The Times: “He’s happy with us. Marcus is a fantastic player. He faced the responsibility of becoming an important player at Man United – United, like us, are one of the biggest clubs in the world – too young.

“He suffered a bit with this change of generation at United too. If you see United in the last five years, they had difficulties rebuilding the team, to become stronger again.

“He was there. So it’s not easy for a player [from whom] people demand a lot. When you are an important player, you have a lot of responsibility.

“We were looking for a player like him on the market. A player that could play in the three positions up front.

“We were able to sign Marcus on loan now because of his desire to play for Barcelona. He waited a lot. He knew that we were dealing with financial rules. But he was patient. He waited and we’re happy to have him.”

Rashford emerged as one of United’s most talented players to come out of their academy. 

Big things were expected from the forward after he scored twice on his debut against Midtjylland in 2016. 

However, Rashford failed to be a success at Old Trafford. 

He scored 138 goals in 426 senior appearances for the Red Devils, but couldn’t perform on a consistent basis and so came under plenty of criticism from the supporters. 

After being pushed to the fringes by manager Ruben Amorim, the England international left to join Aston Villa for the second-half of the 2024-25 season. 

Villa opted against making Rashford’s loan permanent last summer, and he landed a move to Barcelona. 

The United academy graduate wasn’t their first-choice target, but he has established himself as an important player for the La Liga giants. 

Barcelona want to sign him permanently, but their current financial issues could be a big stumbling block. 

The Catalans are still not out of the woods, despite being frugal for the past several years. 

Stats from Transfermarkt