Barca told they'd be 'insane' not to sign Rashford after Madrid heroics

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Marcus Rashford has officially fulfilled his promise to the Barcelona faithful, delivering the Liga title after a campaign that saw the Manchester United loanee reinvent himself at the Camp Nou. The former Blaugrana manager Ronald Koeman has waded into the discussion surrounding Rashford's future, insisting the club would be "insane" to let the forward return to Old Trafford.

The £30m dilemma

Rashford’s loan spell has been a transformative experience for both player and club, culminating in a second consecutive league title for the Catalan giants. Despite the clear success of the move, Barcelona have yet to trigger the £30 million (€35m) purchase option included in the deal with Man Utd. Reports suggest the Blaugrana hierarchy are attempting to negotiate a lower fee, but Koeman believes they must act quickly to secure the 28-year-old on a permanent basis after his dominant display in El Clasico.

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Koeman demands Rashford stay

After seeing the forward "completely destroy" Madrid in their latest encounters, Koeman believes the £30m price tag represents a bargain in the current market for a proven winner who has adapted perfectly to the Spanish style of play.

“If Barcelona lets him return to Manchester United after this loan, I think they will regret it immensely. Because 30 million in the current market for a player with these characteristics, these numbers, this experience… that's a rip-off?" Koeman said as quoted by AS.

"Rashford hurts teams. Madrid looked terrified every time he turned and ran. Against Real Madrid, he completely destroyed them on the counter-attack. The speed, the aggression, the directness, the confidence - Madrid couldn't handle him. Every time Barcelona advanced, he was the danger. He scores a free-kick in El Clasico, stretches the entire defensive line, creates numerical advantages, presses, gets in behind the defence, and yet there are people within the club who hesitate to pay 30 million? That seems insane to me.”

Clasico strike explained

Meanwhile, speaking to the BBC after the title celebrations, Rashford reflecting on his spectacular goal that helped dismantle Madrid, revealing that the strike was almost an accident. He confessed that he hadn't initially intended to test the goalkeeper from such an awkward position until his teammates intervened.

“I had no intention of shooting,” Rashford explained. “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 put in a cross, but everyone was shouting at me to shoot, and then I got a little carried away, and it was good that I ended up shooting. It was a nice goal.”

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Rashford's desire to remain

Rashford made his feelings clear about where he wants to be playing football next season. When asked about his future, the striker admitted: “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.”

The forward is clearly attached to the project currently being built under Flick. He added: “Yes, this is a great team, and they'll win a lot in the future. So being a part of that would be something special, so we'll see."