Barcelona sporting director Deco met the representatives of Man Utd forward Marcus Rashford on Monday in a ‘key meeting’, according to reports.

The Red Devils allowed Rashfordto leave in a temporary move to the Catalan giants in the summer transfer market after spending the previous six months on loan at Premier League side Aston Villa.

A number of clubs were rumoured to be interested in a deal for Rashford but the England international opted to join Barcelona, who have a €30m (￡26m) option to buy him at the end of the season.

Rashford has been well received at the Camp Nou with the Man Utdloanee making crucial contributions, scoring ten goals and providing nine assists in 34 appearances, 20 of which were in the starting XI.

And it has now become clear that Barcelona want to buy Rashford from Man Utd in the summer but there are rumours that they can’t afford the ￡26m plus the England international’s high salary.

There were even rumours over the last week that Man Utd had turned down their attempts to renegotiate the terms of the ￡26m buyout clause in his contract.

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Man Utd reportedly ‘regret’ putting in the clause as they now think he is worth towards the ￡50m mark with rumours of interest from other clubs if Barcelona don’t trigger the deal.

And The Peoples Personclaim that ‘a new price as low as ￡17.5m’ has been quoted by Barcelona to Man Utd but there is ‘zero intention to compromise on a deal the Mancunian side already feel is a poor reflection of the loanee’s value’.

A fresh report in Spanish newspaper Sportclaims that ‘a key meeting took place in the offices between Deco and Arturo Canales, Marcus Rashford’s agent,?to begin laying the groundwork for negotiations with Manchester United this coming summer’.

Despite Deco keen to reduce the fee, Man Utd ‘consider the deal finalised and that now it’s just a matter of deciding whether or not to exercise it’.

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The report adds: ‘The agent, who works for the same agency as Arturo Canales, maintains a good relationship with Manchester United and was instrumental in securing Rashford’s loan to Barcelona last summer. His presence is once again crucial in building bridges and trying to bridge the gap in negotiations that are expected to be challenging.

‘For now, the English club has shown no signs of being willing to budge on the price. Their official stance remains firm. Even so, Bar?a are confident that as the weeks go by and the player’s willingness to cooperate, a path to an agreement may open up.’

Former Liverpool midfieder Danny Murphy thinks Rashford’s time at Man Utd is over no matter who takes over as the new permanent manager at Old Trafford.

Murphy told Boyle Sports: “I don’t think Michael Carrick, or whoever gets the job, will be able to influence the club to change their approach on Marcus Rashford. I think he’s had his chances and opportunities.

“Also, the fanbase has generally turned on him a little bit. I think he’s too far gone. Even if he doesn’t get the Barcelona move, a move somewhere else will benefit him.

“He looks like he’s playing with freedom. I even saw him come off the bench against Real Madrid, and he looked so sharp, expressing himself and appearing like a different player. I think his days at United are over, regardless of who is in charge.”

But former Man Utd assistant manager Rene Meulensteen reckons there could be a route back to Old Trafford for Rashford.

Meulensteen told BetGoat: “It could be a route back for Marcus Rashford at Man United, definitely. I think Marcus is still as ‘red’ as anyone because he came through the ranks as a young kid, and that will never go away, that will never leave him.

“It’s the same with?Scott McTominay. Both players have done extremely well wherever they’ve gone. But I think it was good for Marcus to have that spell away, first of all at Aston Villa, but now at Barcelona. It’s a different culture, a different language, and a different style. Every week is different.

“The?Premier League?is different. It’s so much more demanding than any league in the world. And I think he’s enjoying his?football, and that’s the most important thing. He needs to enjoy his football.”