Marcus Rashford's humiliating Barcelona debut compounded by painful Michael Carrick remark
Marcus Rashford's humiliating debut for Barcelona comes almost 10 years after his first start for Manchester United, after which he was hailed as priceless by former team-mate Michael Carrick. Rashford joined the La Liga champions last week on a season-long loan move after becoming surplus to requirements under Ruben Amorim at Old Trafford.
After kicking off life in Catalonia by training with his new team-mates, Rashford then flew out on the club's pre-season tour of Japan. A 3-1 victory over J-League side Vissel Kobe followed in what was his first match for the club.
However, it was an embarrassing baptism for Rashford, who came on at half-time before being replaced in just the 78th minute. His low-key bow for Barca is worlds apart from when former United star Carrick gushed over Rashford's senior debut for his boyhood club in February 2016.
Rashford was only 18 when he was brought into the United starting line-up against FC Midtjylland in the Europa League as a last-minute replacement for the injured Anthony Martial. He quickly announced himself to the world as he scored twice in a 5-1 United win.
Afterwards, in what is a far cry from the reaction to his Barca debut, Carrick lauded Rashford. "It's great. You can't put a price on that for the younger lads, especially Marcus. It's incredible and brings back memories for me, when I made my debut," Carrick told MUTV.
"It's what football's all about, and what this club has been about for so long. For a local lad to do that and come through the system like that, I'm delighted for him."
After his first minutes for Barcelona, manager Hansi Flick explained why the 27-year-old came off just over half an hour after coming on. "He's [a] week behind the others," Flick said.
"He hasn't been training as much with the ball, and we want to look after him. It was a very good match, a good test for us. The first 30 minutes were fantastic.
"After that we lost a bit of control, but the second half was also very good. I'm pleased. What they do with the ball, how they pressed us, it's really interesting. You can tell they have a clear idea, and it's similar to ours."
Rashford hadn't played for United since December 2024 after being dropped by Amorin. He spent the second half of the 2024/25 season on loan at Aston Villa.
Barca have the option to make Rashford's deal permanent for £26million next summer after he was handed the No. 14 shirt, previously worn by Thierry Henry at the club. Since arriving, he has claimed that his new residence feels like home.
"I'm very excited," Rashford told Barcelona's YouTube channel upon his unveiling. "It's a club where people's dreams come true, they win big prizes. What the club stands for means a lot for me.
"I feel like I'm at home and a big factor in my choice to come here is because it is a family place and a good place for good players to showcase their skills. Another factor is because the conversations I had with [Hansi Flick] were positive.
"What he did last season was terrific. To lead such a young team to a very successful season and come back to pre-season and still want to do more, it shows me everything I thought I knew about the club and it's everything I wished. I'm eager to learn the Barcelona way."
Next up for Barcelona is a friendly against Seoul in the South Korean capital on Thursday. Rashford will have a reunion with ex-United team-mate Jesse Lingard, who captains the K-League side.
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