Mind reportedly made up for injured Aston Villa attacker Marcus Rashford | OneFootball

It's known that Marcus Rashford will not rejoin his parent club, Manchester United. His career revival at Aston Villa makes it so that unless the England international sets a record-breaking pace, he'll be seen as a disappointment at United. The comparisons and blame would squarely fall on the club. And those making note of the stark contrast of the player in two separate settings would be valid.

After all, under Unai Emery, Rashford has played at an exceptional level. With Ruben Amorim in charge, he often doesn't make the matchday squad as a substitute, even when fit. For ManU, there is too much room for further embarrassment that isn't worth the unlikely upside in the Portuguese manager's 3-4-3 system.

It appears, however, that Rashford has a preferred summer destination outside of England. The Mirror reports that the forward would like to join Barcelona. Apparently rejecting a potential further future with Villa, he appears eager to prove himself with the La Liga side.

During this time of year especially, media outlets can often publish pieces that tread between legitimate sourced intel and rumors or gossip. It doesn't make sense for him and his camp to close the door on a continued stay with AVFC outright, at least not at this moment.

The Champions League aspect should rightfully play a part for him. There are still hopes of Emery achieving the needed results to qualify, but certainly other teams are better positioned right now. Even so, Rashford will, of course, prefer playing in CL, but his prior experiences with United should indicate that missing out there wouldn't be the absolute worst-case scenario.

His aim is to improve how people view him as a player, at least enough so to earn more call-ups by Thomas Tuchel. Rashford will also want to be in a place where he feels appreciated and is striving for a productive overall season. That's obviously possible at Barça. It is still true at Villa, especially seeing as B6 is where he's seen his career revive.

Positives may not outweigh negatives in potential move

Leaving for Hansi Flick's side also comes with the risk of not knowing how he'll fit in their system. Compared to Villa, even if he isn't up top all the time, or even a starter, Rashford knows how Emery operates and can feel at home.

It's possible that playing in Catalonia has always been a childhood dream of his. Returning to ManU is out of the question. Outright dismissing Villa for a move to Spain seems off with the timing and career intention of Rashford's camp.