Marcus Rashford will be presented this Wednesday as the second official reinforcement of the first team for 25/26. The first was Joan García, who arrived last month at FC Barcelona in exchange for 25 million euros net from Espanyol.
The English international, however, arrives on loan for one year with a non-mandatory purchase option. According to journalist Fabrizio Romano, the forward agreed with Manchester United to reduce 15% of his gross salary, which is around 20 'kilos' per year.
In that sense, Barça will take charge of €14M of the player's salary, that is, €7M net, plus other performance variables (goals, minutes played), while the 'red devils' manage to get rid of one of the highest contracts in their squad, beyond, initially, not receiving any extra compensation for the operation.
What must Rashford do for Barça to decide to buy him?
Regarding the purchase option, the 'azulgrana' team will decide whether to activate it or not in June 2026 depending on Rashford's performance. The club values his intention to always wait for a 'culé' offer and do everything possible to make the operation economically viable this summer.
However, beyond being an affordable figure, Barça does not plan to spend 30 million on a forward who fails to prove his worth on the field. In principle, the expectations of the coaching staff and the board point to an offensive production of the 27-year-old winger in the order of 20-25 goals in 25/26.
In 24/25, Ferran Torres, without being a starter, scored 19 goals and gave another 7 assists in 45 matches. Well, if the 'Shark' was able to produce 26 goals the previous year, Rahsford clearly has the quality and experience to match or exceed these records.
Everything will depend on his adaptation to Hansi Flick's scheme and being able to stay physically fit throughout the season to accumulate quality minutes in La Liga and Champions League. The Manchester player comes from adding 11 goals and 8 assists in 24/25 with United and Aston Villa.
If, finally, Marcus's performance does not meet expectations, the forward will have to return to Old Trafford in the summer of 2026. Although the purchase option, sources such as Fabrizio Romano himself and the 'COPE' network assure that Barcelona would have to pay a penalty for returning the winger to the club with which he still has a contract until 2028.
This would be around 5 million euros or the equivalent of 30% of the winger's salary during 25/26. Information that, for now, is not confirmed and contrasts with the non-obligation to pay or not the 30 M€ set by 'Man U' as the exit price for its former '10'.
Rashford will do everything possible to avoid another 'Joao Félix case'
Barça already 'passed' on acquiring a loaned forward with Joao Félix in 2024. The Portuguese scored 10 goals and 4 assists in 44 matches (22 as a starter) in which he played 2,143 minutes. Atlético asked for at least 50 million to let him go and, finally, Chelsea took over his services in exchange for 52.5 'kilos'.
The loan of the Viseo player to Barça, however, did not include a purchase option, although the Portuguese also agreed to lower his emoluments to wear the 'azulgrana' shirt. After a very poor semester in London, Joao arrived in January at Milan, where he could not shine either. Now, he aims to return to Benfica to try to redirect his career.
Logically, Marcus Rashford will do everything possible to avoid a similar scenario to that of Félix and Joao Cancelo, who also failed to convince the 'culés' to sign him last summer. Even more so when his arrival in Catalonia occurs just before the 2026 World Cup. If the winger wants to have options to return to the national team, he will have to shine as a 'culé' this season.
FOLLOW US ON OUR SOCIAL NETWORKS:
- INSTAGRAM: @fcbarcelonanoticias_com
- FACEBOOK: FCBN
- X (TWITTER): @FCBNOTICIAS
- THREADS: @fcbarcelonanoticias_com