Barcelona legend had recommended Man United superstar to the club in 2019 – report

Back in 2019 when Barcelona knew Luis Suarez was nearing the end of his tenure, they began looking for a replacement. In 2019, they had already signed Antoine Griezmann from Atletico Madrid but still needed someone to replace an ageing Suarez.

Former Barça striker and club legend Patrick Kluivert, who was working as the academy director of the team at the time took note of Manchester United superstar Marcus Rashford and recommended him to the management, as relayed by SPORT.

Back then, the Barcelona legend, who played for the club between 1998 and 2004, making 257 appearances while scoring 122 goals, had said:

“I like Marcus Rashford, a lot. It will be really difficult to get him over. But he is a good player.

“I don’t see a lot of players who can play in Barcelona. [Pierre-Emerick] Aubameyang, perhaps he can play. There is not a lot. Maybe some players who can play in La Liga, young players. But, for me, I think the best one is Marcus Rashford.”

A lot has changed at Barcelona ever since Kluivert suggested Rashford to the Blaugrana. For that matter, the entire forward line has been altered as it is now being led by the likes of Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha, Ousmane Dembele, Ferran Torres, and Ansu Fati.

The face of this attack would have been extremely different for Barcelona, especially in the ongoing season as Rashford is in red-hot form. In 47 appearances across all competitions for United, the England international has scored 28 goals followed by eight assists.

The only Barcelona player who is close to Rashford’s tally is Lewandowski, who too has scored 27 goals. Surprisingly enough, the second leading goal-scorer for the team is Raphinha, who has netted nine times in 39 outings across all competitions.

Recent reports suggest that Rashford is one of Xavi’s dream targets for the summer, with his current contract at Manchester United expiring in 2024. However, a move looks extremely unlikely due to a combination of the Catalans’ finances and the forward’s renewal talks with his club.