Marcus Rashford has enjoyed a strong start to life at Barcelona as he looks to earn a permanent move away from Manchester United.
Ross Jackson
Ross Jackson
Rashford is enjoying life in Spain
Rashford is enjoying life in Spain
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It's obviously great for pundits and neutrals when players suddenly begin to thrive away from Manchester United.
They're very quick to laugh and poke fun at United, pointing out how much of a mess the club is in. Yet, the fact of the matter is, when the player in question is still contracted to United, those within Old Trafford will be just as happy as anyone.
If United had tried to sell Antony in January they'd have done well to recoup £10million of the £85m they spent on the Brazilian in 2022. Half a season flourishing in La Liga and suddenly United have banked £19m with a potential £2.6m in add-ons.
There's no chance United will recoup anywhere near the initial £64m they paid for Rasmus Hojlund in 2023, but if he continues to shine with Serie A champions Napoli - he's already scored half the number of league goals he managed in the entirety of last season with United - then they should at least be able to make a bigger dent in the sum that will go down as a loss on the Denmark striker.
The same goes for Marcus Rashford. His United career is over and so the better he plays during his loan stint at the Camp Nou, the better the chance of United being able to demand a hefty fee for the 27-year-old.
Rashford has enjoyed a solid start to life in Spain, with three goals and five assists in 11 appearances. His Barca displays have even seen him return to the England set-up ahead of next summer's World Cup.
As you'd expect at a club of Barcelona's stature, Rashford has plenty of competition for a places in the frontline, with two of the top five in the rankings for this year's Ballon d'Or for company in Lamine Yamal and Raphinha, as well as veteran frontman Robert Lewandowski and former Manchester City forward Ferran Torres.
Barca boss Hansi Flick said shortly after Rashford's arrival that he believed the United loanee was capable of playing up front, despite his struggles in that position at times during his career, and a few months in he's clearly not changed his mind.
"Marcus can be a No.9 or a No.11. When we think of him, we value the fact that he can play in more than one position," Flick said, as per TNT Sports.
"He has given us a lot of positives and, of course, he can play as a centre forward."
The more positions Rashford is capable of playing across the frontline, the more opportunities he will have to play and show to his temporary employers why he is worthy of a permanent move.
Pundits and neutrals may laugh if Rashford goes on to thrive in Barcelona, but United will be laughing with them.
His United career is over and the more he impresses in Spain, the better it will be for them.
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