Barcelona alternative to Marcus Rashford up for sale this summer
Barcelona alternative to Marcus Rashford up for sale this summer While the international break tends to lend itself to transfer stories, the big talking point in Barcelona appears to be Marcus Rashford. A couple of months ago it seemed certain that the Catalan side would exercise their €30m buy option agreed with Manchester United in the summer, but as it reaches two months since his last goal for Barcelona, it seems they are reconsidering. The Blaugrana are currently edging towards signing a cheaper and younger alternative if reports coming out of Catalonia are to be believed, with several options identified.
Newly capped Spain international Victor Munoz, Benfica winger Andreas Schjelderup and former La Masia product Jan Virgili are the names that have been mentioned most often. Benfica open to Schjelderup sale According to Jornal Record in Portugal, as cited by Sport , Barcelona will have the green light to pursue Schjelderup this summer. Benfica President Rui Costa has reportedly identified the Norwegian talent as one of the players they will look to sell on.
It is also suggested that he has no intention of renewing his deal in Lisbon, which currently expires in 2028. Barcelona have been following him for the past year , and it helps that they have a good relationship with his agent Rafaela Pimenta. Given his age and potential though, it remains uncertain how much cheaper he would be than Rashford.
Doubts about Jan Virgili signing Perhaps the cheapest option would be re-signing Jan Virgili, who joined RCD Mallorca last season. Barcelona have a 40% sell-on fee for Virgili, and his release clause is €30m, meaning the Blaugrana could bring him back for €18m. The same outlet say that Barcelona have been impressed by Virgili’s debut campaign in La Liga, but his inconsistency means that not everyone in Can Barca has been convinced by him as a legitimate alternative.
Virgili has six assists this season, but is yet to score. One of the ideas behind signing Rashford was the guarantee of more goals, and Schjelderup and Munoz compare more favourably in that regard. Schjelderup has seven goals and four assists this season in 36 appearances, while Munoz has six goals and five assists in his 31 outings thus far.