Raphinha raises official complaint to Barcelona over issue impacting Marcus Rashford and others

Marcus Rashford finally got the summer transfer he craved but it might have come at the cost of comfort.

Barcelona have been preparing for the new football season in South Korea, where they've been training hard in some very challenging conditions.

While it's vital that elite athletes are put through their paces in pre-season, recent temperatures in Korea have remained consistently higher than 30 degrees Celsius.

Consequently, head coach Hansi Flick and his staff have reportedly been forced to adapt their training plans and complaints have emerged from senior players that will have Nike, the club's long-time technical supplier, looking for innovative solutions.

According to reporting by Mundo Deportivo, some of Barcelona's players have raised concerns about the club's new shirts and their ability to handle the heat.

"Excessive sweating causes the shirts to become soaked and heavy, which has led players to express their displeasure," reports Juan Poqui.

"Raphinha, one of the team's captains, has raised this issue. The heat and humidity are causing some problems and have led to some changes in training routines, such as taking more hydration breaks."

It is believed that the texture of the shirts in question is not conducive to dealing with sweat, which is bound to be a problem when professional players are training in extreme humidity.

Rashford's most recent club, Aston Villa, experienced a similar issue with their Castore match shirts in rather lower temperatures not long before the former Manchester United forward joined them on loan.

Raphinha is among the favourites to win the Ballon d'Or this year (Image: Getty)

Villa's men's and women's teams complained that they were uncomfortable and their performance affected, and Villa reportedly demanded a new kit before switching to adidas.

Belgium players experienced similar distress at the European Championship last summer when their adidas home shirt retained an alarming amount of moisture during the Red Devils' group stage match against Romania.

Barcelona defeated Japanese champions Vissel Kobe on Sunday (UK time) before heading to Korea, where they will play FC Seoul in the capital on Thursday.

Flick's squad will take on Daegu FC on Monday to complete their Asia mini-tour, rounding off their pre-season programme with a game against Como at the Estadi Johan Cruyff in Barcelona on Sunday, August 10.