“Rashford Symptom” at Barça

However, the azulgrana team once again showed its most recognizable virtue under the German coach: the ability to adapt to the opponent´s plan.

A match without control and with a frantic pace

The coach Sarabia opted for an aggressive approach, with individual marking, high pressing, and a high line to disrupt Barça´s ball exit. Although the culé team struggled in the development of the game, two individual errors from the Elche team allowed Fermín and Ferran Torres to put the blaugranas ahead on the scoreboard. Beyond the result, the approach caused Barça to adopt a direct and accelerated style of play, with hardly any pauses. As a consequence, Flick´s team lost ball possession for the first time this league season (49%-51%) and for the second time overall after the defeat against PSG (47%-53%). However, this time the outcome was favorable, avoiding a bitter taste thanks to the victory in Montjuïc.

Rashford, the most sought-after resource

In the midst of the constant exchange of attacks, marked by the absence of Pedri —an essential piece to maintain the fluidity of the game—, the azulgrana team found in Marcus Rashford its main offensive reference. The Englishman became the most recurrent way to break through Elche´s defense, taking advantage of his power and speed in the absence of control in midfield.

Rashford shone, but the style was lost

The English forward once again demonstrated why he is a player capable of defining matches with individual actions. His physical power, speed in open field, and technical quality were decisive, although his contribution to collective play remains a point to improve, especially regarding combinations, space occupation, and defensive duties. Against Elche, Rashford scored a stunner after a quick play initiated by Casadó and extended by Fermín. Additionally, he was the attacker who intervened the most in the game, with 47 touches of the ball: six more than Lamine Yamal despite playing 15 minutes less, 16 more than Fermín —replaced by Olmo in the 66’— and 17 more than Ferran, substituted just before stoppage time. These statistics clearly reflect that Flick´s team, faced with the impossibility of imposing their dominance through passing and possession, opted to skip lines and look directly for the English forward, whose explosiveness proved more useful than the pause and talent of Lamine Yamal, still limited by pubalgia.

Rashford acknowledges his room for improvement

The English player himself spoke after the match about his performance and the team´s goals, maintaining his commitment and improvement discourse: "I try to give my best. Today I could have done things better, but I am happy with my start to the season", Rashford declared. "We have worked hard to win. We take it one game at a time", he added.

Goal: regain control before the break

With two key matches before the next international break —against Bruges in Champions League and against Celta in LaLiga—, the challenge for Flick will be to reconnect Barça with its traditional style. Beyond the results, the German coach must ensure that the team imposes its identity with the ball again and that Rashford stops being just an emergency beacon to become the driving force of a dominant team.