Marcus Rashford: Has England winger been 'decisive enough' to earn summer Barcelona transfer from Manchester United?

When he moved on loan last summer, Rashford became the first Englishman to play for Barcelona since Gary Lineker in the late eighties.

The England winger has performed strongly in his debut campaign, notching 27 goal involvements in 46 games to date.

And this Sunday, as Barcelona take on Real Madrid in El Clasico at Camp Nou, he could bring his season to a glorious conclusion by becoming the first-ever Englishman to win La Liga with the Catalan club.

On the surface, the signs would point to Barcelona wanting to make Rashford's season-long loan into a permanent deal, which would see a fee of £26 million head Manchester United's way.

But as TNT Sports' Spanish football expert Phil Kitromilides explains, there is a backstory that comes with any potential deal.

"The issue of Marcus Rashford is an interesting one because in theory, it's been a decent loan for him," Kitromilides said.

"He's in double figures for goals and assists this season, he's been useful off the bench and he's been useful as cover when either Lamine Yamal or Raphinha have been out injured.

"Are Barcelona going to pay 30 million euros to sign him permanently? Again, in theory, you would think it's kind of a no-brainer.

"That's not that much money for someone who has chipped in. But there's a feeling in Barcelona that he hasn't necessarily been decisive enough to warrant that kind of money. The goals and assists that he has provided haven't necessarily been in the biggest of games.

"He hasn't necessarily decided matches either starting or coming off the bench, which is why there is a little bit of reticence to pay that kind of money, although it seems like it could be a good deal. He seems happy enough.

"He hasn't necessarily played as much in the second half of the season as he did in the first half because of injury. He's very much a squad player but I think he's earned the move. He's come here and he's put up big numbers and applied himself well and worked hard. It's whether or not Barcelona want to part with that precious cash that they have for a relatively decent squad player."

Barcelona might be on the verge of winning La Liga in back-to-back seasons as their fierce rivals in Madrid continue to implode.

But there is still a "nagging" feeling in the minds of their supporters about the continuing elusiveness of the Champions League.

The Blaugrana, who went out in the quarter-finals to Atletico Madrid this year, last tasted glory in Europe's elite competition back in 2015, under Luis Enrique and with their famed 'MSN' frontline of Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar.

Bringing that drought to a close will be front and centre of head coach Hansi Flick's objectives for next season.

"Flick himself said that the Champions League was their priority [this season]," Kitromilides says.

"The Champions League was the thing that they really, really wanted to win. Yes, they're going to win La Liga again and they're going to win it comfortably. And they've been the best team in Spain so far.

"But there is that little nagging doubt that they weren't able to get over the line in the Champions League. And they were knocked out by Atletico Madrid. It wasn't like they were swept away by PSG or Bayern or any of these European giants that they might have deemed acceptable to be beaten by.

"They were knocked out by Atletico Madrid, which does make it a little bit more of a bitter pill to swallow, I think, for Barcelona fans.

"Atleti also knocked them out of the Copa del Rey as well. So they're a little bit sick to death of Atletico Madrid.

"The Champions League is the big thing that Hansi Flick wants. He's said it before going out of the competition and after going out of the competition as well.

"When he was asked about his future, whether or not he was going to remain as Barcelona manager and how long for, he said, 'I want to win the Champions League with this club'. So this is clearly his priority, the number one focus for his project.

"It feels like a big summer for Barcelona as well, because they do have Lamine Yamal and they do have Raphinha. Raphinha being injured this season has cost them massively.

"But there's going to be an issue through the middle at centre-forward because Robert Lewandowski, the numbers this season in terms of goals are way down on the output from last season. He's going to be 38. They're potentially going to offer him a one-year deal but they need someone else at centre-forward because Ferran Torres, he chips in with goals, but he is not elite-level.

"And when you've got Raphinha on one wing and Lamine Yamal on the other, I think you do need someone who is elite to finish off the chances.

"Lamine Yamal's development has been extraordinary. Genuinely historic, what we've seen him do. And it's very, very exciting and thrilling to see someone so young be so good and so quickly. We just hope that injuries don't curtail his development and he can progress and continue to be such a fabulously entertaining and exciting player to watch.

"But they do need reinforcements as well. And they do also have monetary limits; economic issues have been the bedrock of Barcelona's transfer policy over the past few seasons. So they will have to try and balance the books and see what they can do in the transfer market."

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