La Liga: Marcus Rashford May Not Be Registered For Barcelona's Opening Game, Says Joan Laporta

Barcelona president Joan Laporta has conceded that Marcus Rashford may not be registered for the LaLiga opener against Mallorca. 

Rashford, who joined the Blaugrana on a season-long loan from Manchester United, is one of four new signings for the LaLiga champions this summer. 

Hansi Flick's team have also welcomed Joan Garcia in a €25m deal from Espanyol, with Roony Bardghji and Roger Martinez also joining on a permanent basis. 

But a dispute with Marc-Andre ter Stegen over his injury status threatened to disrupt Barcelona's chances of registering their new signings. 

The Catalan club currently have only one eligible goalkeeper, Inaki Pena, to face Mallorca on Saturday, as both Garcia and Wojciech Szczesny are not yet registered with La Liga.

Ter Stegen was stripped of the captaincy on Thursday after refusing to allow Barcelona to share his medical data with LaLiga. 

The Blaugrana would reportedly have been able to clear 80% of the German goalkeeper's wages until mid-season if the 33-year-old was classed as a long-term absentee. 

That would have allowed them to free up funds to register new players, with the timeframe to reach that threshold deemed to be four months. 

However, Ter Stegen posted on social media that he would be sidelined for three months, but the two parties have since confirmed the situation has been resolved. 

Barcelona have since confirmed that Garcia will be ready for the start of the 2025-26 season, while Laporta said they are still awaiting clarity on Rashford’s situation.

"We're working to make it happen. With Marc's decision, we have the option of registering Joan Garcia, and we're working on the rest," Laporta said.

"This week we'll have news, hopefully good news, to see if we can register them before La Liga starts. And if we can't, we have time."

Laporta's comments came after Barcelona reclaimed the Joan Gamper Trophy with a 5-0 thrashing of Como, a game that saw Rashford earn his first start for the club. 

The England international grabbed an assist for Raphinha in the match, with Flick's side led by braces from Fermin Lopez and Ballon d'Or contender Lamine Yamal. 

Following the victory, Ter Stegen delivered a speech to the Barcelona supporters to further clarify the situation and that he was looking forward to the new season. 

"It's a long time coming. Thank you very much for coming to the Johan," Ter Stegen said. 

"Obviously, we all share the same excitement and want to return to the Camp Nou, our home. There’s very little time left.

"As for me, I think it was important to resolve the issue between the club and me, and it's time to look forward. Furthermore, we now have new faces. 

"I want to welcome them and offer them my support. With these signings, we're going to be stronger, and I'm sure they'll fit in very well with this locker room.

"We must improve in some aspects and, as always, we will fight for every trophy again. We hope that, with your help, we can win as many titles as possible."

Barcelona kickstart their LaLiga title defence on August 16 away to Mallorca, having gone unbeaten in their four pre-season friendlies, scoring 20 goals in those matches.