Manchester United outcast leaning towards Barcelona as he seeks fresh challenge | OneFootball

It is clear at this point that Barcelona’s top transfer target for the summer is not in defence or midfield but in the wing position.

After all, the club struggled at times in the ongoing season with no like-for-like replacement for Raphinha and Lamine Yamal and are expected to rope in a reasonably big name to reinforce the position.

Luis Diaz, surprisingly, is the name floating around in the Catalan media the most but the move does not appear to make much sense given Liverpool’s high asking price for the winger.

Rashford is an option

As related by SPORT (h/t FCBWorld) in a recent update, Rashford is open to a new challenge and considers a move to Barcelona to be his best option. He is longing to sign for the club and sees it as the best move to rejuvenate his career.

Yearning for Barcelona. (Photo by Ben Roberts Photo/Getty Images)

The Englishman is thus expected to be one of the most commonly discussed names in the upcoming summer transfer window, especially given his contractual situation.

Rashford is currently on loan at Aston Villa but will return to Old Trafford in the summer. Given his falling out with manager Ruben Amorim, however, he is expected to leave in the summer and Manchester United intend to sell him permanently.

Barcelona, for their part, could look to sign Rashford on a loan. If they opt to pursue a permanent transfer, however, the deal could work out for close to £40 million which is still significantly less than Luis Diaz’s expected transfer value.

So far this season, Rashford has scored six goals and provided three assists for Aston Villa in the Premier League. Further, he averages 1.1 key passes per game and has created eight big chances.