Barcelona star Raphinha has expressed admiration for Manchester United loanee Marcus Rashford following his standout performance in a pivotal Champions League match. Rashford, who moved to Barcelona on loan from United last summer, has been relishing his stint with the Spanish football giants.
The loan agreement between United and Barcelona was reached after Rashford, an England international, expressed a desire to depart Old Trafford.
Barcelona holds the option to secure Rashford’s services permanently at the season’s end for a reported fee of around £26 million. There are already rumours that the Spanish club plans to retain the United loanee beyond the current term.
Rashford was in fine form during Barcelona’s Champions League face-off against FC Copenhagen on Wednesday night, contributing to the 4-1 triumph at Camp Nou by finding the back of the net.
Rashford’s goal, a direct free-kick, earned him accolades from teammate Raphinha, who took to social media to express his admiration, reports the Manchester Evening News.
Raphinha shared a photo on his Instagram story, featuring him and Rashford celebrating their goal against Copenhagen. The Brazilian’s caption was simple yet expressive, consisting of two rocket emojis and a fire emoji.
With this Champions League goal, Rashford’s tally for the season across all competitions now stands at nine goals and 12 assists.
Despite finding the back of the net once more for Barcelona, Rashford has openly acknowledged the difficulties he’s faced in adapting to life with the La Liga giants since leaving United.
« I think for the front guys we have to put as much pressure on the ball as possible because the problem is when players have time on the ball to pick the passes and to see what our backline is doing, » Rashford said in an interview with TNT Sports.
« If they do have time then the backline have to adjust. But it’s our way of playing, it brings an intensity to the game. I think when we play at this intensity it’s difficult for teams to match us.
« For me it takes a little bit of learning to get used to because you can’t let them rest on the ball. Whoever is closest to the ball always has to put pressure. So it’s a little bit different to what I’d done before. But this is the style of defence we play and when it works it’s really good. »
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