There has been a new meeting between the agent and brother of Marcus Rashford and Barcelona, with the Catalan giants reportedly moving for the Manchester United outcast after deciding another deal would be ‘too difficult’.
Rashford spent the second half of the season on loan at Aston Villa after being frozen out at Man Utd by Ruben Amorim. Villa signed the forward on loan with an option to buy worth £40million.
Rashford impressed in the West Midlands, registering four goals and six assists in 17 appearances and showing glimpses of his true talent after a troublesome spell at United.
But his season was ended early by injury and Villa have decided against signing him permanently.
Rashford is now on the hunt for a new club as there seems to be no way back for him at United.
Barcelona made an approach for the England star in January, prior to his Villa switch, and a transfer to LaLiga is now back on the cards.
Sport journalist Toni Juanmarti was the first to reveal that a ‘meeting’ took place ‘this morning’ (Wednesday) between Barca sporting director Deco and Rashford’s agent Dwayne Maynard.
The pair held transfer talks at a hotel in Barca, with Maynard pictured by reporters.
Barca are ‘progressing’ in their swoop for Rashford after cooling their interest in Liverpool winger Luis Diaz.
A move for Diaz is ‘very difficult’ as Barca will struggle to meet Liverpool’s asking price, which is thought to be upwards of £60m (71.5m euros / $81m).
Barca feel Rashford will be far easier to sign as he will cost just £40m (48m euros / $54m) and is also ‘crazy about’ making the move, which should help personal terms to be a quick process.
Juanmartia ends his update by adding that if the move reaches completion then it will be a loan with an option for Barca to buy in 2026. The LaLiga champions cannot afford to spend huge sums on Rashford this summer.
Fabrizio Romano has also weighed in on Rashford’s situation. He has confirmed that the 27-year-old is ‘available to all clubs for £40m’.
Rashford has ‘remained on Barca’s attacking shortlist since January’.
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Deco has spoken publicly on Marcus Rashford pursuit
Romano has also confirmed Juanmarti’s information on Maynard meeting Deco, while adding that there are three more unnamed forwards on Barca’s radar.
On Friday, Deco confirmed that he is a fan of both Rashford and Diaz, sparking new speculation about the pair.
Rashford is allegedly trying to ‘force’ through a move to Catalonia and is willing to take a significant pay cut to make the transfer a reality.
United want that £40m fee to be paid upfront but Barca are very unlikely to agree to this. United’s negotiating position will depend on whether other clubs come forward for Rashford.
TEAMtalk revealed back in February that Rashford dreams of playing for Barca, despite having only just joined Villa at the time.
Ansu Fati’s impending move to Monaco should aid Barca’s pursuit of Rashford as it will provide space on their wage bill.
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