Marcus Rashford has said he feels at home at Barcelona following the completion of his loan move from Manchester United to the Catalan side , and added that it’s a club where “dreams come true.”
The deal includes an option for the switch to be made permanent next summer, with reports suggesting the price is fixed at around €30 million ($34.9m), although neither club confirmed the amount.
Rashford, 27, flew to Barcelona on Sunday to complete the move before the LaLiga champions depart for their preseason tour this week.The club confirmed that he will wear the No. 14 jersey.
Hansi Flick’s side head to Asia on Thursday, where they will play friendlies in Japan and South Korea, taking on Vissel Kobe, Daegu and FC Seoul, where Rashford’s former United teammate Jesse Lingard is playing.
“Yeah very excited, it’s a club where people’s dreams come true, they win big prizes and what the club stands for really means a lot to me as well,” he told Barça TV.
“It feels like I’m at home and this is a big factor in my choice to come here because for me it’s a family club and people are comfortable here and it’s a good place for good platters to showcase their skills.”
He added: “Another factor is because the conversations I had with the manager were positive. What he did last season was terrific.
“To lead such a young team to a very successful season and come back to preseason and still want to do more, it shows me everything I thought I knew about the club and it’s everything I wished.”
Barça have held an interest in Rashford since January, and his name remained on this table this summer as they prioritised signing a new left winger, sporting director Deco told ESPN in May.
Nico Williams and Luis DÃaz were also targets, but with the former renewing his contact with Athletic Club and Liverpool knocking back an approach for the latter, Barça turned to Rashford.
“I was clear on my preference [to join Barcelona] from the beginning. Actually from maybe in January. It didn’t work out in January so I went to Villa and enjoyed a good period there,” Rashford said.
Flick was keen to have the deal done in time for the tour, to give Rashford time to bed in, while from the club’s point of view it was also the most affordable option.
Not only does Rashford arrive on loan initially, but reports suggest he has also taken a substantial salary cut to push through the move, although sources at Barça wouldn’t comment on contractual issues.
Rashford joins an attack that already features Lamine Yamal, Raphinha, Robert Lewandowski, Ferran Torres and Dani Olmo as Flick looks to build on last season’s success by going one step further in Europe.
Barça won LaLiga, the Copa del Rey and the Spanish Supercopa in the German’s first season in charge, but lost to Inter Milan in the Champions League semifinal.
Meanwhile, Rashford has a point to prove after a tough period at his boyhood club.
He spent the last two weeks training away from the United first-team squad after being told by coach Ruben Amorim that he does not feature in his plans at Old Trafford.
He has not played for United since facing Viktoria Plzen in the Europa League last December, with Amorim dropping him for the subsequent 2-1 Premier League win at Manchester City and not considering him for first-team duty again.
ESPN
