The Athletic: How €30m Man Utd deal became ‘more complicated’ overnight after rapidly-developing transfer bombshell

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Stretty News

·28 Mei 2026

The Athletic: How €30m Man Utd deal became ‘more complicated’ overnight after rapidly-developing transfer bombshell

Marcus Rashford’s hopes of joining Barcelona permanently in the coming months have taken a hit following their agreement for Anthony Gordon.

The Blaugrana, to almost everybody’s surprise, ignited their pursuit of Anthony Gordon only yesterday, before green-lighting a £70 million deal by the evening.

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Barcelona prioritise Gordon over Rashford

Newcastle United’s Gordon will travel to Catalonia this week to undergo his medical and put pen to paper on his new contract, bringing an end to his three-and-a-half-year tenure on Tyneside.

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As a result, it’s looking increasingly unlikely that Barcelona will activate their £26m buy option for Rashford, who most prominently occupies the same position as Gordon on the left flank.

Marcus Rashford: "If I was a magician, I would stay at Barcelona" 🪄
– Minggu, 10 Mei 2026

They had already been dragging their heels over the fee set by Manchester United, hence why it came as such a shock that the La Liga champions agreed such an exorbitant sum for a player with only six Premier League goals to his name across 2025/2026.

How the two attackers have fared in all competitions this term

Rashford left sweating over his Camp Nou future

The Athletic claims that Rashford’s projected switch has become ‘more complicated’ in the aftermath of Newcastle accepting Barcelona’s proposal.

Sources close to Marcus Rashford maintain that no decision has been communicated to them by Barcelona, and they still see a chance of remaining at the club next season alongside Anthony Gordon’s arrival. Senior executives at Barca admit that with the arrival of Gordon, the
– Rabu, 27 Mei 2026

Reports in recent weeks have suggested Barça had set their sights on taking the 28-year-old on loan for another campaign, but United are adamant about cashing in on their academy graduate this year so the funds can be put to good use when the window opens.

Alternatively, United could demand that he returns to Carrington ahead of pre-season in order to explore an alternative move; Arsenal and Bayern Munich are said to have been keeping tabs on Rashford’s situation in case he doesn’t end up joining Barcelona and is put up for sale by the Red Devils.