Marcus Rashford change confirmed as Barcelona get what they want | Football | Sport
Hansi Flick has declared that Marcus Rashford has “adapted” to his Barcelona side as speculation continues to mount over his long-term future at Camp Nou. The England star joined Barca on a season-long loan from Manchester United last summer and has made a strong impression during his time at the club, netting 11 goals and contributing 13 assists in 40 appearances across all competitions.
Rashford also played his part in helping Barca extend their advantage at the summit of the La Liga table, opening the scoring in a 2-1 victory over Atletico Madrid on Saturday. Giuliano Simeone had given Atletico the lead, but Rashford promptly levelled before Robert Lewandowski struck the decisive winner three minutes from time. Barca hold a £26million purchase option on Rashford at the conclusion of the season, though it remains uncertain whether the club are willing to activate that clause and make his temporary switch permanent.
Nevertheless, Flick spoke glowingly of Rashford during his pre-match press conference on Tuesday as Barca geared up to welcome Atletico in the Champions League quarter-final first leg. The former Bayern Munich manager praised the fact that Rashford has sharpened his defensive pressing and hinted that another starting berth could be on the cards.
“It’s not just about pressing with the ball, you also have to defend, but he’s (Rashford) doing things well and has adapted,” Flick said. “We’re going to play against Atletico and they’re good on the wings.”
This follows just days after Flick revealed he was “very happy” with Rashford’s displays following his goal in the victory at Atletico. The German said: “I’m very happy with Marcus. He has shown his quality and he scored an important goal. I can’t say anything about his future, we have to focus on the matches until the end of the season.”
Rashford has not featured for United since December 2024, and was stripped of his No.10 shirt by Matheus Cunha under former head coach Ruben Amorim last summer. Prior to that, Amorim controversially stated he would sooner name his 63-year-old goalkeeping coach as a substitute than a player who fails to give his utmost, in a thinly veiled dig at Rashford.
He spent the latter half of last season on loan at Aston Villa and was compelled to train separately from United’s first-team squad during the summer before his move to Barca. Speaking to ESPN towards the close of 2025, Rashford made his intentions abundantly clear regarding a permanent switch to Barca.
He said: “Oh yeah, for sure. I’m enjoying this football club and I think for anybody who loves football, Barcelona is one of the key clubs in the history of the game. For a player it is an honour.”
