Spanish media have made their feelings clear on Marcus Rashford after he was substituted 33 minutes after coming on in his Barcelona debut.
Rashford has signed for the La Liga champions on loan from Manchester United until the end of the season but the Blaugrana can make the deal permanent for a fee of £30.3 million if they are satisfied with his contributions.
The 27-year-old trained with his new teammates after completing his move earlier this week and jetted out to Asia for the pre-season tour, which started with a 3-1 win over Japanese side Vissel Kobe.
Rashford was a substitute for the clash, entering the fray at half-time and replacing Raphinha on the left as Hansi Flick rang the changes.
Advert
He showed his quality by playing a key part in Roony Bardghji's first goal for the club to make it 2-1, picking out Robert Lewandowski with a smart pass in behind in the build-up.
But to the surprise of many, the England international was replaced just over half an hour after coming on.
In his press conference, Flick confirmed that Barca are managing Rashford's minutes after he spent a considerable period training alone when banished from first-team training at United and around three sessions with his new colleagues.
“He’s a week behind the others," Flick explained.
"He hasn’t been training as much with the ball, and we want to look after him."
What media in Spain said about Rashford's debut
But despite only playing 33 minutes, Mundo Deportivo journalist Gabriel Sans liked a lot of what he saw from Rashford.
In a reaction piece, he stated: "Marcus Rashford only needed half an hour of his Barça debut against Vissel Kobe, at the start of the Asian tour, to not only prove he can fit into Hansi Flick 's team, but also to display technical quality and exquisite play, although he lacked dribbling skills. He didn't score, but that was the least of it. He lived up to expectations.
Focusing on different elements of Rashford's game, Sans said that he was "attentive to his tackles and defensive assists", which is one of the aspects the staff wants to strengthen".
He also wrote that Rashford "wasn't guilty of being an individualist" and looked to play for the team even if not every action came off.
In addition, MARCA's M.Carmen Torres said that Rashford was "active, involved and led important offensive actions" while also getting praise for showing "his pace" and "ability to find space".
He also claimed Rashford was "the star of the second half" after Yamal lit up the first 45 minutes at the Misaki Park Stadium.
Rashford and Barcelona return to action on Thursday when they take on FC Seoul in South Korea.
Topics: Marcus Rashford, FC Barcelona, Spain, La Liga, Manchester United
Josh Lawless