Barcelona chief Deco has given his opinion on why Marcus Rashford struggled at Manchester United following his strong start in Spain.
Manchester United have started the 2025/26 campaign poorly, and the pressure is once again mounting on head coach Ruben Amorim.
The Reds have managed only two wins from their first seven fixtures and were left humiliated by Brentford in their most recent outing.
Meanwhile, Marcus Rashford is thriving on loan at Barcelona. After a sluggish start, he has provided assists in four straight La Liga matches and netted a stunning brace to sink Newcastle in the Champions League.
The Spanish club have an option to buy Rashford permanently next summer but many still wonder how things ended up going so poorly for him in the end at Old Trafford.
Deco says Rashford’s struggles at United were down to two things
Rashford broke through at United as a teenager but he never really had stability during his time in the first-team. He played under four different permanent managers, all of which had completely different styles and systems.
Barcelona’s sporting director Deco believes that is one of the reasons behind Rashford’s struggles at Old Trafford, while also pointing out how the demands expected of Rashford were very big.
“He’s a very high-level player; he exploded very early, then he had great seasons at United, then he had years of more complicated management with changes of coaches, and perhaps he struggled too because they demanded a lot of things from him there,” Deco told Mundo Deportivo.
United have always brought through youth prospects but it is true that the expectations on them seem to be higher. At the moment, Kobbie Mainoo is out of the team and his lack of athleticism is criticised by some fans more than the underperformance of the £42 million Manuel Ugarte.
Deco speaks on Rashford permanent deal
Deco also spoke further about Rashford’s future. While he has claimed that Barcelona are ‘happy’ with the forward, a decision on permanent transfer has not yet been made.
“He’s on a simple loan, there’s no penalty, and if we want him, we have an option to buy,” Deco added.
Read More: “Why could I not…?” – Ruben Amorim told he should be ‘hurt’ by Marcus Rashford’s Barcelona form
“It’s too early to talk about decisions for next season, but what matters is that we’re happy with him. What we thought he could bring to us, he’s bringing.
“These aren’t decisions for now; now it’s time to focus on the games to come. A decision will be made, but that’s not being discussed right now. There’s a contract between the clubs but it has to be discussed.”
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