Barcelona Should Take Some Positives Despite Loss to Manchester United

In their second match of the International Champions Cup, Barcelona suffered their first loss, to old foes Manchester United.

The victory for the Red Devils was probably deserved on balance of play, but the win certainly wasn't as comprehensive as the 3-1 scoreline might suggest.

Louis Van Gaal's side got the rub of the green and took their chances when presented.

If things had been different, the Catalans would've been 2-0 up before Wayne Rooney headed United into an eighth minute lead.

Luis Suarez's old friend, the woodwork, would deny him and Barca on more than one occasion.

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It's worth dwelling on the ex-Liverpool man's performance, too. For just over an hour, he was a real thorn in United's side. Stellar movement authored his game alongside crisp and sharp passing interchanges.

What a pity that his team-mates often weren't on the same wavelength. With Lionel Messi and Neymar in situ, the outcome in an attacking sense could've been very different.

Pedro Rodriguez was very definitely in the shop window against a team who allegedly wish to become his new employers, per Daily Express (h/t Jamie Sanderson of Metro).

Continued speculation surrounding his future can't please Luis Enrique, and the sooner the Canary Islander's future is sorted, the better for all concerned. At least Rodriguez showed in patches why Lucho wishes to keep him at Camp Nou, even if it remains as a back up to the first-choice front three.

Barca's problems on the night stemmed from defensive mishaps, and if Thomas Vermaelen wishes to have a future in Blaugrana, he simply has to produce the goods each and every time he is given the chance. And on much bigger stages than this, it must be said.

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To be ultra critical of the Belgian is perhaps a little unfair given how rarely he has played football since signing for Barca, but as a player of international class, he really needed to stamp his authority all over this one.

Perhaps the biggest bonus of the night was the form and performances of Sergi Roberto and Rafinha.

Despite an early miss when one-on-one with David de Gea, the former grew in stature as the game progressed and often out-manoeuvred a static United midfield.

Expert use of the space was evident, with Roberto using the channels effectively and linking up play with aplomb.

A switch to right-back didn't present any problems either, and Enrique noted in his post-match comments via Renato Goncalves of Barca Blaugranes:

"

Sergi Roberto at right back is another option. The more options we have the better. He looked good playing at full back.

Douglas didn’t play for fitness reasons. He ended the game the other day a little sore and we did not want to take risks.

"

Rafinha's bullish performance was typical of a player who is developing well in Catalonia. 

He was able to routinely exploit the space between United's defence and midfield and his goal was reward for a solid ninety minutes.

"

GOLAZO!! Rafinha scores with a brilliant volley. Man Utd 2-1 Barca https://t.co/5U17aSeDma

— Footy Vines (@FutbollVines) July 25, 2015"

Both Roberto and Rafinha deserve runs in the side on this evidence, but Enrique is going to run into problems again when trying to integrate them into the XI. More so when Arda Turan joins the party in January.

It's the sort of conundrum every manager loves, but Barca can ill afford for two more of their own to eventually consider their futures because of a lack of regular match time.

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Not that you could blame the manager for placing the excellent Ivan Rakitic and sublime Andres Iniesta ahead of them at this stage.

Goalkeeper Claudio Bravo might want to take a look over his shoulder too. Marc-Andre ter Stegen's decision to come back to training 11 days early, per Javier Miguel of Sport, is evidently paying dividends.

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The German certainly couldn't be faulted for any of United's goals and looked calm and assured throughout.

As Barca head to Washington and a date with Chelsea, Enrique has much to ponder. Defensive fragility threatens to undermine the good work of the rest of the side, but a knee-jerk reaction is wholly unnecessary.