Flick Reveals Why He Snubbed Rashford During Barcelona's Stunning Comeback Victory
Barcelona head coach Hansi Flick justified his choice to substitute Marcus Rashford at halftime during his first La Liga start, clarifying how removing the Manchester United loan signing enabled his squad to revert to their optimal formations.
Rashford started Saturday evening's match against Levante as impressively as the team's vibrant neon green uniforms. The dynamic forward twice drove toward the goal line in the early moments and compelled an initial stop from Pablo Cunat. Nevertheless, the home side opened the scoring, exploiting Barcelona's notoriously aggressive offside strategy to secure a 15th-minute advantage through Ivan Romero.
The Catalan side was once more exposed on the counter-attack during first-half injury time. In a sequence that originated from a Barcelona set piece near Levante's penalty area, Alejandre Balde ultimately conceded a penalty for a handball offense. José Luis Morales confidently converted the penalty kick.
Down 2–0 at the interval, Flick implemented two changes. Marc Casadó was withdrawn for Gavi in a direct replacement at the defensive midfield position while Rashford was substituted by Dani Olmo. The Spanish creative midfielder moved into a central attacking role, enabling Raphinha to return to the left flank where he excelled during the previous campaign.
"Marcus created several opportunities in the opening period and demonstrated his potential contribution," Flick observed after the match. "In the second period, we required adjustments and positioned Raphinha on the flank.
"I believe those were the correct modifications to implement," the German tactician remarked. "The opening goal following the restart transformed the contest."
Rather than stemming from Flick's strategic adjustments, Pedri reduced the margin in the 49th minute with a powerful long-range effort. Within three minutes, Barcelona had equalized as Ferran Torres connected with Raphinha's corner delivery.
By the conclusion of a frantic match, the Brazilian forward was operating at left-back while Robert Lewandowski had been deployed in a congested attacking formation. Levante finally succumbed to Barcelona's relentless pressure when Unai Elgezabal accidentally deflected Lamine Yamal's delivery into his own goal during added time.
Following his disappointment with a routine season-opening victory against Mallorca, Flick was delighted with his team's determination on Saturday. "I'm extremely proud of my squad," the manager declared. "We fought to recover and secured three points; we maintained belief throughout. It's challenging because our opposition typically defends very deep against us, and we must enhance our performance in such scenarios. This match will significantly aid our continued development."
The encounter might also function as a cautionary tale for Rashford. Raphinha found it difficult to influence the game from his central first-half position, especially when confronted with Levante's compact defensive structure. Unless Rashford can quickly reproduce the performances that the Brazilian produced from the left wing last season—an incredible tally of 56 goals and assists made him a Ballon d'Or contender—Flick cannot be criticized for favoring Raphinha in that role.