Yamal reveals Rashford failed to grasp Clasico intensity before Barcelona rejected permanent deal

Lamine Yamal has offered a candid assessment of Marcus Rashford’s loan spell at Barcelona, claiming the England forward initially failed to grasp the intensity of an El Clasico fixture before eventually finding his feet in the rivalry.

Speaking to Movistar, the teenage winger recalled watching Rashford in Barcelona’s 2-1 defeat to Real Madrid at the Bernabeu and feeling the Englishman had not yet understood what the fixture meant. “Rashford’s first Clasico, which we lost 2-1 at the Bernabeu, I saw him play and thought, ‘he still doesn’t know what a Clasico is’,” Yamal said. “Then in the second leg, he realised what a Clasico was all about, scoring a free-kick and playing with a completely different intensity.”

Yamal added that players who come through La Masia arrive with an innate understanding of the derby’s significance. “When you come from La Masia, from your very first Clasico, you know what it’s all about and you know that match is a battle.”

Rashford made 49 appearances across his loan spell, scoring 14 goals. Despite that return, Barcelona chose not to exercise their option to sign him permanently, instead moving to recruit his England team-mate Anthony Gordon. Rashford subsequently returned to Manchester United, where he has made five appearances under manager Michael Carrick without scoring.

The timing of his return has not been straightforward. United have won just one Premier League game so far this season and were eliminated from the Carabao Cup by Brighton. Carrick, however, urged patience when speaking ahead of the club’s trip to Fulham at Craven Cottage, acknowledging that a difficult spell was always a possibility following a strong end to last season.

“We’re always learning. As a group, individually, as a collective, I think we’re always learning,” Carrick said. “At some point in time, when you’re trying to build towards something, it’s not always going perfect and it’s not always going to plan. We had such a good spell last season, and going into this season, whether it was going to be now or at some point during the season, there was going to be a time where you don’t get everything out of it what you wanted.”

Carrick insisted the club would work through the difficult run, adding: “It’s how you react, staying focused, keep doing the right things and staying as level as best as you can. We fully believe that we’ll come through.”