BARCELONA will regret if they do not move heaven and earth to sign Marcus Rashford permanently according to former boss Ronald Koeman.
The Barcelona icon has branded the £25m (€30m) price tag an “insane” bargain in today’s market.
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Barcelona will regret if they do not sign Marcus Rashford permanently this summer Credit: https://www.instagram.com/marcusrashford/
The Man United man has had a strong season and helped Barcelona win La Liga Credit: Getty
Koeman believes the Barcelona hierarchy would be making a huge mistake if they allow the England forward to slip back to Manchester United after his loan spell, insisting his impact at the club has been impossible to ignore.
He said: “If Barcelona lets him return to Manchester United after this loan, I think they will regret it immensely.
“Because 30 million euros in the current market for a player with these characteristics, these numbers, this experience… that’s a rip-off.
“Rashford hurts teams. Real Madrid looked terrified every time he turned and ran. Against Madrid, he completely destroyed them on the counter-attack.
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“The speed, the aggression, the directness, the confidence, Madrid couldn’t handle him.
“Every time Barcelona advanced, he was the danger.
“He scores, stretches defences, creates numerical advantages, presses, gets in behind… and yet there are people within the club who hesitate to pay 30 million euros? That seems insane to me.”
The former Barcelona manager’s comments have intensified debate over Rashford’s future, with many fans agreeing that £25m would represent a huge bargain in the current transfer market.
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Former Barcelona boss Ronald Koemna has been impressed with Rashford and says he deserves his deal Credit: Shutterstock Editorial
Rashford himself has hinted he would be open to staying in Spain after enjoying success with Barcelona, but admitted nothing is certain.
Speaking to the BBC after lifting silverware, he said: “I don’t know. I’m no magician but if I were I’d stay. I’d stay, so we’ll see. I came here to win.
“I want to win as many things as possible, and this is another title.
“This is a great team and it will win a lot in the future. So being a part of that would be something special, so we’ll see.”
He also reflected on a memorable free kick goal that helped Barcelona to a win in the El Clasico, adding: “I didn’t intend to shoot.
“I wasn’t going to shoot because when I placed the ball, I didn’t see the right angle.
“I wasn’t confident it was going to be a goal, so I intended to cross it, but everyone was shouting at me to shoot, and then I got a little more excited and it’s good that I ended up shooting. It was a nice goal.”
Barcelona have enjoyed a strong campaign, bouncing back from their defeat at the Bernabeu against Real Madrid to secure the league title for a second straight season, along with the Spanish Super Cup in January.
