Marcus Rashford’s Barcelona dream faces fresh setback | OneFootball

Marcus Rashford achieved his dream move in the summer when he completed a loan switch to FC Barcelona.

Ruben Amorim fall out

Rashford was brutally left out of Manchester United’s squad to face Manchester City in December 2024 and did not play for the club again after a disagreement with former head coach Ruben Amorim.

He went out on loan to Aston Villa last winter and finally secured his move to Barcelona in the summer, but only on a temporary deal. The England international can sign for the club permanently in the summer for around €30-€35 million.

The winger started out very well and has registered seven goals and 11 assists in 26 matches for the Catalans this season.

Marcus Rashford stats - 2025/26

Source: transfermarkt.com

Decreasing role

In spite of this, it is far from clear what Barcelona will do in the summer.

Rashford has given interviews stating that it is very much his desire to continue in the Mediterranean city, but the club may have other ideas. The rapid attacker has begun to start less frequently for Barcelona and was only named on the bench for their Super Cup semi-final victory over Athletic Club.

In fact, despite starting against Espanyol in the league, he was substituted at half-time and Barcelona went on to win the match. Also, since the 9th of November, he has only provided one assist and has scored zero goals in the league.

Therefore, it is rumoured that Barcelona may not actually sign him permanently, and he has been linked with moves to Atletico Madrid or Paris Saint-Germain.

Media criticism

The Spanish media have also been far from impressed with Rashford’s displays in recent weeks.

After the match against Athletic Club, Mundo Deportivo argued, “he couldn’t find his rhythm in a game that was already decided.”

Fellow Catalan paper Sport were slightly more optimistic over the United man and reported, “the Englishman came out, as always, eager. He attempted a couple of diagonal runs when the game had already slowed down considerably.”

Spanish paper AS was also heavily critical of the winger’s role in the match and claimed, “he came on with the game already decided and with the possibility of finding space. Though he couldn’t take advantage of such a favourable situation.”

The outlet also criticised manager Hansi Flick’s decision to try and fit Rashford and Raphinha in the same line-up against Espanyol and noted, “in his attempt to fit Rashford into the starting eleven, played the Brazilian centrally in the derby against Espanyol. That experiment proved unsuccessful.”

They praised the return to normality with Rashford dropping to the bench.

Amorim gone and what now?

Another complexity is that Ruben Amorim was sacked from his role as head coach on Monday.

Therefore, a new manager appointed in the summer may see Rashford as a valuable asset, or in fact, the Englishman may see a chance to reignite his Old Trafford career without the Portuguese head coach. However, it is also possible that Rashford may see his days at the club as finished.

With just over four months of the season left, there is virtually no clarity on what will happen with the England international.

If Barcelona opt not to sign him permanently, what do you think should be done with him? Vote below in The Peoples Person’s poll on the issue.

Featured image Alex Caparros via Getty Images

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