Marcus Rashford faces the possibility of a frustrating start to life as a Barcelona player less than two weeks before La Liga kicks off.
The on-loan Manchester United star is one of five players who Barca have been unable to register ahead of the start of the new season – two more than the Catalan side had expected.
Rashford has arrived at Camp Nou as one of the major summer signings for Hansi Flick’s side, yet there is a distinct possibility that he will be unable to feature against Mallorca on 16 August as doubts surround the ability of Barcelona to register him.
It is not a new situation for the Catalans to find themselves in with Dani Olmo missing the opening matches of last season due to a similar issue.
The scale of the registration problem this summer, though, is greater than ever before, with Mundo Deportivo explaining there are five players who may be forced to watch from the stands.
Five Barcelona players await registration
In addition to Rashford, goalkeepers Wojciech Szczesny and Joan Garcia have yet to be registered with the league. Szczesny signed a new contract, so he needs to be registered again, while the summer arrival from Espanyol also needs his deal ratified with the league. A long-term injury to Marc-Andre ter Stegen should allow at least one of these players to get the green light.
But there have been two unpleasant surprises for Barcelona on the registration front this summer.
Firstly, it appears that Roony Bardghji will not be allowed to be registered as a ‘B’ team player as previously hoped. His strong pre-season and the fact that he has been heavily used by Hansi Flick counts against him in this regard.
Secondly, Gerard Martin’s new contract means that the authorities must clear him for action after he stepped up from Barca Atletic.
In order to solve the problem, Barcelona may need to sell one or two players, or president Joan Laporta will need to pull another economic lever. Two weeks from the beginning of the season, it’s not the ideal position to be in.
Which players have not been registered by Barcelona yet?
- Wojciech Szczesny
- Joan Garcia
- Gerard Martin
- Marcus Rashford
- Roony Bardghji
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