Following their winning start in Japan, Barcelona continue their pre-season tour of Asia on Thursday with a friendly against South Korean side FC Seoul at the Seoul World Cup Stadium.
Manager Hansi Flick is expected to use this match to further assess his squad and build momentum ahead of the new campaign. It serves as another valuable opportunity for players to impress before final decisions are made on potential outgoings from the club.
As a result, Flick is likely to make wholesale changes to the starting lineup that faced Vissel Kobe. Players who were deployed as substitutes on Sunday, such as Robert Lewandowski, Frenkie de Jong, Jules Koundé, and Ronald Araújo, could all be handed starts this time around.
New signing Marcus Rashford, who made his debut with a lively 30-minute cameo, should get more extensive minutes as he continues to build up his fitness. While a start might be too early for the Manchester United loanee, he is expected to feature heavily.
Their opponents, FC Seoul, are midway through their K League 1 season and will provide a competitive test. They are in decent form and their talisman is a familiar face to European football fans: former Manchester United player Jesse Lingard, who has been a key performer for the side this season.
Despite FC Seoul’s mid-season fitness and sharpness, the significant gap in quality between the two sides should be the deciding factor. Barcelona’s star-studded squad is expected to cruise to a comfortable victory, with some predicting that both Lamine Yamal and Marcus Rashford will get on the scoresheet.
Prediction: FC Seoul 1–4 Barcelona