Marcus Rashford made an impact off the bench for Barcelona in their Champions League victory over Slavia Prague, providing the assist for Robert Lewandowski's goal. The Manchester United loanee was named among the substitutes for the second consecutive match, with Raphinha preferred on the left flank.
Rashford replaced Roony Bardghji in the 61st minute and delivered a cross from the left that Lewandowski converted to seal a 4-2 win for Barcelona. It was Lewandowski's first Champions League goal of the season, extending his run of scoring in the competition to 15 consecutive campaigns.
Barcelona moved into ninth place in the league phase standings with one round of fixtures remaining. They will host Copenhagen next week, needing a win to potentially secure direct qualification to the last 16. Remarkably, eight teams are tied on 13 points.
Barcelona head coach Hansi Flick acknowledged Rashford's performances but remained non-committal about a permanent move. 'Marcus's performances have been really good until now, but we have to manage it,' Flick said. 'It's Deco's job and the club's job to work on next season, so we have to wait.'
Rashford will now hope to force his way into the starting XI for Sunday's La Liga clash with Oviedo before the decisive Champions League match. Spanish media rated his cameo positively, describing his assist as 'fantastic.'
