Marcus Rashford will be playing UEFA Champions League football after all, as Barcelona have agreed a loan deal with Manchester United for the 2025-26 season.
Barcelona will reportedly have the option to buy Rashford next summer, and the English forward will wear No. 14 for the Blaugranas.
Rashford had been spotted in Barcelona as he completed his medical ahead of the move to the reigning La Liga champions. He did not appear in Man United’s 0-0 friendly draw with Leeds in Sweden on Saturday and instead flew to Spain on Sunday.
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The England international fell out with Man United boss Ruben Amorim last season and went on loan to Aston Villa for the second half of the campaign, scoring four times with six assists in 17 matches across all competitions. Two of those assists came in Champions League knockout round matches, as Villa beat Club Brugge in the Round of 16 before succumbing to eventual champions Paris Saint-Germain in the quarterfinals.
The 27-year-old Rashford had played the entirety of his career at Old Trafford before the loan, making 426 appearances while becoming an England star (62 caps, 17 goals).
Marcus Rashford’s comments on Man United exit
Rashford may not have a lot of love for Amorim, but he would not be drawn into bad words about his parent club.
“The situation with Man United, the club is in a period of change, and they have been for a while,” he said, via Sky Sports. “I don’t have anything bad to say about Man United. It’s been an important part of not only my career but my life. I am grateful for the opportunity to play for them but football is the same as life, and not everything goes as simple as you may have thought. This is my next step, my next chapter, and I am fully focussed on trying to improve myself and help the team win trophies. I just wish Man Utd the best and hope they are successful in the future.”
Rashford has said that he’s long-admired Barcelona, and of course he’ll be speaking more about the present and future than his former club. Plus, perhaps there will be room for a Rashford renaissance at Old Trafford if Amorim fails to turn the ship around during the forward’s loan campaign in Spain.
Marcus Rashford to Barcelona: Good idea?
Rashford had been said to favor a Barca move for some time, and he showed plenty of fuel in the tank during his loan to Villa.
A Sky Sports report says that Juventus also looked into signing Rashford, so Man United wasn’t completely in the lurch when it came to bargaining power. Yet finding someone to take a lot of his big wage packet is a coup considering Amorim wants nothing to do with the player.
Barca have incredible talent out wide, with Lamine Yamal and Raphinha both earning Ballon d’Or talk during the side’s La Liga triumph last season.
But there are plenty of minutes for wingers given Barcelona’s status in so many competitions, and a loan means Rashford won’t have to take a pay cut. There are worse ways to spend a move away from your boyhood club than playing on a Champions League favorite and challenging to win multiple other trophies.
📞 "Yeah… It’s official."
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) July 23, 2025
Rashford follows in Lineker’s footsteps. pic.twitter.com/ZvbnDAtbax
