Marcus Rashford: Barcelona director reflects on failed January transfer | OneFootball

Barcelona sporting director Deco has confirmed the club explored a move for Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford in January.

Rashford was made available for transfer towards the end of 2024 and several sides expressed an interest in his signature, but it quickly emerged that the England international was prioritising a move to Barcelona.

The dilemma for Barcelona was the cost of any such deal, with Rashford's wages of over £300,000 per week proving problematic even with United's willingness to contribute a percentage, and they ultimately accepted defeat and watched Rashford join Aston Villa instead.

Deco has since confirmed Barcelona's interest in a deal but played down their desire to break the bank considering their depth of quality in attack already.

"The winter transfer market is always difficult," Deco told SPORT. "It is true that there were important moments for Barca in the past, such as the arrival of [Edgar] Davids, but there is no Davids available on the market today. It is difficult because the good players, those who can contribute, are not available.

"It is true that Rashford was mentioned, that he could have come, but we were not desperately looking for a player either. We knew that we were getting players back, that others were going to reach their best form. If he could have come it would have been good, but it was not a priority."

Deco admits Rashford was a target / Soccrates Images/GettyImages

Barcelona were not the only side to explore a move, with Serie A moneybags Como also lodging an ambitious offer which is not thought to have appealed to Rashford.

Como president Mirwan Suwarso told Sky Sports Italy: "We did our best to give our coach the players he needed for his style of football.

"We analysed our needs, and when possible, we tried to take action. We gave it our best shot, but we know we are a small club, so some people still don't take us seriously. When these big names hear about Como, they say: 'No, I want to play in the Champions League or in Europe'. That makes sense, we fully understand what we can and cannot do.

"But we dream. As human beings, that's what keeps us moving forward. Every day, we look ahead to something bigger; we try to do better than the day before. So yes, we hope and believe this club can be competitive one day."