Marcus Rashford’s absence was felt as Barcelona crashed to a 2-1 defeat at local rivals Girona.
Following the knee injury which kept him out of last week’s Copa del Rey semi-final first leg defeat to Atletico Madrid, Rashford was again sidelined for the La Liga clash. The injury is a blow to both the player and the club, as Rashford had been enjoying the best form of his Barcelona loan spell.
While the knock is not thought to be serious, it has certainly checked his momentum as he looks to convince Barca to make his move from Manchester United permanent this summer. Barca have struggled in his absence, suffering a 4-0 hammering at Atletico before the surprise defeat to Girona.
First-half missed chances, including Lamine Yamal hitting the post from the penalty spot, proved costly. While Pau Cubarsi gave Barca the lead just before the hour mark, it was a poor second-half display from the visitors, who were pegged back by a Thomas Lemar equaliser a couple of minutes later.
Fran Beltran then scored a disputed winner on 86 minutes, given following a VAR check, with Barca claiming a foul in the build-up. The result saw Hansi Flick’s side lose top spot in the La Liga table to Real Madrid.
Spanish media didn’t hold back after the match, with MARCA declaring a full-blown “crisis that could leave them empty-handed this season,” while SPORT said “everything fell apart in a chaotic second half.”
While it’s clear Barca have lacked firepower in recent games, possibly due to the absence of Rashford, Flick’s tactics and the defence have come under most fire. One commentator, Manolo Lama, said they “defend terribly” and that Flick had “gone mad” with his approach.
He also claimed that Barca played “4-1-5 formation” against Girona with “five forwards that neither pressed nor won the ball back nor helped the defender.”
One of the few bright sparks was one of Rashford’s rivals for a starting berth, Raphinha, who returned from injury. Barca Universal, who gave him a 7/10 rating, 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.”
With his recent injury absence in mind, Raphinha was withdrawn on the hour mark. Football Espana said it was “no coincidence that his exit coincided with Girona growing in the game.”
Rashford will hope to return to action when Barcelona host Levante on Sunday, although Raphinha’s performance against Girona may force him to settle for a place on the bench.
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