11 hours ago
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Alan Shearer has insisted Marcus Rashford's loan move to Barcelona will provide the 27-year-old with the opportunity to revitalise his career.
Rashford spent the latter half of last season on loan at Villa Park after his relationship with Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim broke down shortly after the Portuguese arrived at Old Trafford.
Barcelona have long been linked with a move for Rashford, and a deal finally came to fruition this week as he completed a season-long loan move to the Catalan club.
The deal also includes an option for Hansi Flick's side to make the move permanent next summer.
Following the announcement Rashford expressed his excitement to play for the club and Shearer claimed that the former England star has made the right choice.
'It could be a huge move for Marcus Rashford,' Shearer told Betfair. 'That all depends on him.
Alan Shearer claimed Marcus Rashford has the opportunity to revitalise his career at Barcelona
The 27-year-old completed a season-long loan move to the LaLiga club earlier this week
But Shearer insisted whether Rashford will be a success in LaLiga will come down to his mentality
'I guess, and he probably thinks that it's time for a reset and if he can forget what's gone on in the past, the good and the bad, then he's got a great opportunity to kickstart his career again.
'It doesn't get much bigger than Barcelona, so Hansi Flick and the club clearly believe in him, they're paying his full salary and there's a clause at the end of the loan if they want to sign him on a permanent basis, so what an opportunity for Marcus to have a career reset.'
In recent years Rashford has often found himself at odds with United particularly due to perceived issues with his attitude.
After the United academy graduate publicly expressed his desire to leave the club in a bombshell interview late last year, Amorim questioned the advice Rashford was receiving from his entourage.
Shearer highlighted Rashford's mentality and insisted that Rashford is solely responsible for getting back to his best on the pitch.
'That's what he must do and that has to be the mentality,' he said.
'Only he can answer whether he gets back in the England squad. I don't know him personally, what his state of mind is in terms of where he feels he is, but I guess the whole Barcelona project believe they can get the best out of him otherwise they wouldn't be paying the £300,000-odd per week for him.
Rashford's attitude has been called into question in recent seasons at Manchester United
But the forward showed glimpses of his ability during his spell on loan at Aston Villa last season
He continued: 'I guess they've done their homework, sat down with him and they feel it's a chance worth taking.
'It could be an expensive one or it could be a great signing. I don't know is the answer.'
'We've seen flashes of his best at Aston Villa. They chose not to sign him permanently for whatever reason.
'Barcelona believe they can get the very best out of him and if they can, it could turn out to be a shrewd signing.
'But you also have to look at it and think it's a little bit of a gamble because we've not seen anywhere near the heights that he hit all those years ago for a long time now. Only Marcus knows where he is mentally and physically.'
