Marcus Rashford looked set for a permanent move to Barcelona. The outline was there, the numbers were manageable and his loan spell had gone well. Then Barcelona walked away and spent £69m on Anthony Gordon instead. That tells you everything about what they think they need.
Rashford, now 28, had done his part. After leaving Manchester United on loan following his breakdown in relationship with Ruben Amorim, he delivered 14 goals and 14 **** ists in Catalonia. That is solid production by any measure. He also forced his way back into Thomas Tuchel's England plans for the World Cup and capped his season by scoring in the win over Real Madrid that sealed La Liga.
Ordinarily, that would be enough to trigger a £26m purchase option. Barcelona decided otherwise.
The explanation from sporting director Deco was direct and, frankly, sensible. Barcelona were grateful for Rashford's contribution, but they wanted a different profile. In his words for RAC1, "We are extremely grateful to Rashford. He contributed a lot last season, but our idea of play is much more linked to Anthony.
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