Barcelona sporting director Deco directly addresses Marcus Rashford transfer and his comments change everything

Barcelona sporting director Deco has issued an update on Marcus Rashford’s potential move to the La Liga club.

Rashford, 27, has been linked with a move away from Old Trafford since falling out of favour with Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim.

When speaking to NBC Sports on Tuesday, The Athletic’s David Ornstein revealed what he knows about Rashford’s situation.

“The talks continue over a potential solution, but we don’t have a resolution,” said Ornstein.

“He’s training with the main group at Manchester United and sources close to the player say that he is fit and available for selection and there are no issues between him and Ruben Amorim.

“I think Manchester United would certainly be open to his exit for football and financial reasons – he earns in excess of £325,000 a week on a contract that runs until 2028.

“But I could see this rumbling on right up to the deadline day because it is complicated.”

Ornstein also wrote in The Athletic, that the player “is thought to favour a move to Barcelona”. While Borussia Dortmund remain keen, AC Milan now look unlikely to sign the England international.

According to TBR, Rashford’s representatives met with Barcelona on Tuesday in Lisbon, where the Catalans played out an entertaining 5-4 win against Benfica in the Champions League. Both parties reportedly held ‘exploratory’ talks over a potential move.

Marcus Rashford has been linked with a move to Barcelona in the January transfer window (Credit:Getty)

And Barca’s sporting director and former Chelsea midfielder Deco, 47, has issued the club’s current stance on the situation.

"We have our priorities and if we can renew the contracts of the players we have now and if we can bring in other reinforcements, that would always be welcome,” Deco told Movistar [quotes via 90min].

"The coach is happy with the squad we have, so any future decisions will be later."

"These are fair play issues, and the priorities today are the renewals of the important players we have in the squad," Deco added. "Once this is over, we can focus on one reinforcement or another, but it is not something that the manager has asked us for."

Rashford’s current Manchester United contract is set to run until June 2028 having penned a five-year deal at the Red Devils in the summer of 2023.