Marcus Rashford missed by Barcelona as Spanish media to setback | Football | Sport
Barcelona slumped to another defeat in Marcus Rashford’s absence as they were beaten 2-1 at local rivals Girona. After the knee problem that ruled him out of last week’s Copa del Rey semi-final first leg reverse against Atletico Madrid, Rashford was again absent for the La Liga encounter.
The setback is a disappointment for both player and club, given that Rashford had been enjoying the best form of his loan spell. While the injury isn’t considered severe, it has undoubtedly disrupted his progress as he attempts to persuade Barca to sign him permanently from Manchester United this summer. The Catalans have faltered without him, enduring a 4-0 thrashing at Atletico before the unexpected loss to Girona. Squandered first-half opportunities, including Lamine Yamal striking the woodwork from the penalty spot, proved decisive. Although Pau Cubarsi put Barca ahead shortly before the hour, the visitors delivered a lacklustre second-half performance, with Thomas Lemar restoring parity soon after.
Fran Beltran netted a contentious winner on 86 minutes, awarded after a VAR review, with Barca claiming a foul during the build-up. The result saw Hansi Flick’s team surrender top position in the La Liga standings to Real Madrid.
The Spanish press pulled no punches following the game, with MARCA proclaiming an outright “crisis that could leave them empty-handed this season,” while SPORT said “everything fell apart in a chaotic second half.”
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While Barcelona have evidently lacked firepower, perhaps owing to Rashford’s unavailability, Flick’s tactical approach and the defence have attracted the harshest criticism. Commentator Manolo Lama said they “defend terribly” and accused Flick of having “gone mad” with his tactics.
He further argued that Barcelona deployed a “4-1-5 formation” against Girona featuring “five forwards that neither pressed no won the ball back nor helped the defender.”
Among the few positives was Raphinha, one of Rashford’s competitors for a starting position, who returned from injury. Barca Universal awarded him a 7/10 rating and said: “The Brazilian was on full throttle, pressing high out of possession and going for goal whenever presented with a chance in attack. Came close to scoring on a couple of occasions in the first period but could not capitalise.”
Given his recent spell on the sidelines, Raphinha was substituted after 60 minutes. Football Espana observed it was “no coincidence that his exit coincided with Girona growing in the game.”
Rashford will be hoping to feature when Barcelona welcome Levante on Sunday, though Raphinha’s display against Girona could see him confined to the substitutes’ bench from the start.
