Vissel Kobe 1-3 Barcelona: Bardghji nets on debut as Rashford makes first appearance
Marcus Rashford looked lively on his Barcelona debut, but he was outdone by Roony Bardghji as the Blaugrana beat Vissel Kobe.
Roony Bardghji and Marcus Rashford made their Barcelona debuts in Sunday's 3-1 friendly victory over Vissel Kobe, with the former marking the occasion with a goal.
The build-up to Barca's pre-season tour of Japan and South Korea was plunged into chaos when payment issues led the club to call off the first leg earlier this week, only to reverse that decision when those issues were resolved.
The Blaugrana failed to travel to Japan on Thursday as scheduled, but Hansi Flick's 30-man squad, which did not include captain Marc-Andre ter Stegen, made the trip on Friday.
The first of three games on the tour pitted them against J1 League champions Vissel, who provided a stern test before fading late on.
Lamine Yamal, Raphinha and Pedri headlined a strong Barcelona lineup, and they took the lead just after the half-hour mark as a goalmouth scramble led to Eric Garcia prodding home.
However, Vissel levelled shortly before the break, with Taisei Miyashiro spinning on Rikuto Hirose's pass to finish after Daiju Sasaki was denied by Joan Garcia.
The visitors changed their entire lineup at half-time, with new arrivals Bardghji and Rashford among those to enter the fray.
Rashford got through 33 minutes before being withdrawn, with 17-year-old Dro Fernandez replacing him shortly after Barca went 2-1 up.
Bardghji, a €2m arrival from Copenhagen earlier this month, picked out the bottom-left corner after being teed up by Robert Lewandowski, with the move started by Rashford's incisive pass.
Fernandez also got his first Barca goal late on, latching onto a rushed clearance to fire a low volley past Daiya Maekawa from the edge of the area.
Data Debrief: Positive debut for Rashford
Rashford was limited to just over half an hour on the field on Sunday, as he builds his fitness after being exiled from first-team training at parent club Manchester United.
He had a positive impact despite his limited minutes, with his four touches in the Vissel area only bettered by Dani Olmo (five).
Rashford also hit the target with his only shot and created one chance, while winning possession on the final third twice.
