Barcelona opted against signing Marcus Rashford on a permanent deal despite the Man United star impressing in Spain
Sections of the Spanish media have been left unimpressed with Anthony Gordon’s performance for England on Tuesday night against Ghana. The former Newcastle man’s underwhelming showing could leave Barcelona questioning their decision to sign Gordon rather than Manchester United’s Marcus Rashford.
Gordon came in for criticism from the press for the second match running following England’s tepid draw with Ghana. After the exhilarating 4-2 victory over Croatia, Thomas Tuchel’s squad were brought back down to earth as they were held to a goalless deadlock in Boston.
Despite dominating possession, England carved out very little against a resolute Ghana outfit, though qualification for the last-32 looks all but certain. One of the most compelling storylines heading into the tournament has been the battle for the left-wing position between Gordon and Rashford.
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The former recently completed a £69.3million switch to Barcelona from Newcastle, while the latter has seen his hopes of securing a permanent deal at the Nou Camp dashed, leaving his future uncertain. However, with Gordon’s performances found wanting, it’s entirely possible Barcelona could reconsider their stance on Rashford if they wished.
Rashford, 28, concluded a highly profitable season-long loan at Barcelona, where he won La Liga while contributing 14 goals and 14 assists. However, the Catalan club’s decision leaves Rashford at something of a loose end as he prepares to return to United once World Cup 2026 concludes.
Tottenham have expressed interest in the forward with The i Paper revealing the north London outfit are eager to strike a deal for Rashford. Yet it’s tough to see any club offering the £40m fee that United values the striker at.
A staggering weekly salary of around £325,000 is also a major obstacle, although he did accept a reduced wage when joining Barca last summer.
Despite a lacklustre showing against Croatia, Gordon was handed another start by Tuchel, with Rashford once again consigned to the substitutes’ bench. After failing to make any real impression, Gordon made way for Bukayo Saka on 65 minutes, while Rashford had to bide his time until the 83rd minute before entering the action, replacing Noni Madueke.
Spanish media didn’t hold back when assessing Gordon, with La Vanguardia describing his display as “lacklustre.” The Barcelona publication said: “As against Croatia, the winger failed to make a significant impact on the game. Although he was more involved in the play, he was imprecise in some of his dribbling, and his assists, while more purposeful, were wasted by his teammates.”
AS’s evaluation of Gordon featured both commendation and critique, stating he was “excellent defensively but lacklustre in attack.”
Madrid-based Las Razon highlighted how Ghana “shut down the flanks” with full-backs Marvin Senaya and Gideon Mensah “effectively marking Gordon and Madueke.” ABC suggested Gordon “lacked the necessary finesse” to penetrate the Ghana backline and labelled his second-half shot, which was easily saved, “tame.”
Given Gordon’s limited influence thus far, Rashford could well take his place in England’s starting line-up for their group decider against Panama on Saturday. Victory for the Three Lions will likely see them top Group L and guarantee a more straightforward path, theoretically, in the knockout phase.
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