A week ago, Barcelona announced the signing of Marcus Rashford on a one-season loan from Manchester United. The forward became one of the few English players to wear the Blaugrana shirt, and he’s already received an important piece of advice from the last countryman to do so.
Marcus McGuane gave a recent interview to The Sun and spoke about what Rashford can expect in this new experience with Barcelona. “On the field, I’m sure he’ll hit the ground running and give a good representation of himself,” explained the 26-year-old midfielder. “He is a top player with fantastic qualities with lots to give his team – so I’m sure he’ll thrive.”
However, he then emphasized the challenges the former Manchester United star may face as he adjusts to a completely different environment. “Off the field, I’d recommend he immerses himself in the local culture and dives into his new community,” McGuane stressed.
This will be Rashford’s first experience playing for a club outside of England. He spent nearly his entire career with the Red Devils, appearing in 426 matches between 2016 and 2025. In the final six months before his Barcelona move, he was on loan at Aston Villa, so he has never played outside the Premier League.
“Family and friends will be crucial so he settles down and makes it feel like home as quickly as possible. Being in a different country, picking up a different language and adapting to a different culture, you’ll need a good support network,” McGuane added.
Who is Marcus McGuane?
On March 7, 2018, Marcus McGuane played a few minutes in a penalty shootout win over Espanyol in the Supercopa de Catalunya, becoming the first English player in 29 years to wear the Barcelona shirt. He had joined shortly before from Arsenal at just 19 years old.
However, McGuane’s stay in Spain was short-lived. After limited opportunities with the first team, he spent most of his time with Barça Atletic, the club’s B-team in the Spanish second division. There, he made 26 appearances before departing in 2019.
That brief stint in Barcelona was followed by a short spell with Telstar in the Netherlands, before McGuane returned to England in 2020. Since then, he has played for Nottingham Forest, Oxford United, and currently, Bristol City in the EFL Championship.
English players to feature for Barcelona
Over the club’s history, Barcelona have had 13 English players on their roster. However, 10 of them were more than a century ago, in the early 1900s. In the modern era of soccer, only one other name joins Marcus McGuane and Marcus Rashford: Gary Lineker.
The English legend was one of his country’s most prominent stars in the 1980s, even finishing as the top scorer at the 1986 FIFA World Cup in Mexico—outscoring Argentina’s Diego Armando Maradona. That performance earned Lineker a move to La Liga that same summer, where he stayed for three seasons, making 138 appearances and scoring 52 goals with Barcelona.