Marcus Rashford is set to join FC Barcelona on a season-long loan with a purchase option. However, if the Catalan club chooses not to buy him at the end of the loan, they will have to pay a hefty penalty.

Rashford ready to wear the blaugrana

The English forward is about to complete his move to the La Liga champions after agreeing to join Hansi Flick's squad on a one-year loan deal. The agreement includes a purchase option in June 2026 for approximately $40 million.

However, according to Fabrizio Romano (via Diario Sport), if Barcelona decides not to trigger that option, they will have to pay Manchester United a penalty fee of around $6 million.

Manchester United added a special clause for their benefit

Manchester United used a similar clause last season in the loan deal of Jadon Sancho. At the time, the winger joined Chelsea on loan, but the Blues opted not to make the deal permanent and paid the Red Devils $6 million to send him back to Old Trafford.

Sancho remains a United player for now, although he’s been linked with a possible move to Juventus this summer.

Few players have made this switch

Marcus Rashford will become only the second player to make the switch from Manchester United to Barcelona, following Gerard Piqué, who left Old Trafford to return to Camp Nou in 2008.

The transfer is expected to be officially announced soon. Rashford will then join the team for their preseason tour in Asia, and could make his debut on July 27 in a friendly match against Vissel Kobe.

There’s no doubt that Barcelona has secured a top-class player in Marcus Rashford, but if they decide not to keep him, it could come at a high price with Manchester United being the clear winner.