There is little doubt that had Barcelona been in a better situation with regard to their salary limit, then Marcus Rashford would not be at the club this season. The England international joined Barcelona on loan from Manchester United this summer, with an option to buy at the end of the season.

Barcelona were limited in their ability to register signings this summer, and after bringing in Joan Garcia to the tune of €25m, found themselves short of space for their pursuits of Luis Diaz and Nico Williams. Perhaps had they had a little fortune at Roobet bitcoin casino, then they might be in a better situation. As such, Rashford become a much more economic viable option, and having held out for a move to the Blaugrana, Director of Football Deco decided to pull the trigger in mid-July.

Rashford already proving his worth at Barcelona

Rashford looked a little off the pace in their opening games against RCD Mallorca, Levante and Rayo Vallecano. Coming off at half-time in his only start at the Ciutat de Valencia, he failed to make an impact. Since the September international break, Rashford has been looking increasingly sharp though.

Starting against Valencia and Newcastle United, Rashford provided an assist in the first, and scored an outstanding brace to win the game at St. James’ Park – that win alone will be worth a percentage of his wages for the season. Against Getafe and Real Oviedo, Rashford played all but one of half of the games, and came good with two further assists.

Injuries make sense of Rashford recruitment

Beyond the numbers, and in the case of the Newcastle match, his game-winning contributions, Barcelona’s early injuries prove his value. Lamine Yamal has missed their last four games, and Raphinha is poised to miss their next three. It means that Hansi Flick has options beyond playing the likes of Dani Olmo, Ferran Torres or Fermin Lopez out of position in their absence. The other option would be throwing youngster Roony Bardghji into the mix, who is thus far an unproven prospect.

Barcelona are likely to face more injury issues than last year, and Rashford was an opportunity to pick up a player of high quality, but willing to battle for his spot in the side. Had Flick been unable to call on Rashford, then not only would Barcelona perhaps have had a much worse start to the season, but already their forwards would be dealing with heavy legs in his heavy-duty pressing system.