Barcelona boss Hansi Flick spent his Friday firefighting after insinuations that Lamine Yamal and Marcus Rashford have been treated differently.
The Barca hierarchy are accused of forcing Flick to start Yamal against PSG earlier this month despite the starlet arriving late for a team meeting.
Rashford had been dropped from their starting line-up against Getafe in September for the same offence, with Yamal’s reprieve sparking suspicions of ‘double standards’.
But Flick came out swinging in a sweary rant, denouncing a ‘liar’ around the Barca camp and insisting he has full control.
‘I’d like to know where you’re getting that rumor from. It’s b*******. It’s not true,’ he told reporters.
‘At this club, with Deco and the rest of the professionals, I have a real relationship.
Barcelona boss has hit back at accusations that he was forced to pick Lamine Yamal for a game
Spanish journalist heard that the club’s hierarchy forced him to play Yamal against PSG – despite the fact he was late to a team meeting
And that led to suspicions of double standards, because Marcus Rashford was punished for the same offence last month
‘I believe in my work. I have their trust, and they wouldn’t ask us for it. It’s rubbish. Whoever said it lied.’
Flick is looking to turn around a blip this month which saw them lose 2-1 against PSG in the Champions League and then get humiliated 4-1 at Sevilla in LaLiga.
La Blaugrana are still second in the Spanish top flight and only two points behind Xabi Alonso’s Real Madrid, who have taken 21 points from a possible 24.
Yamal, the Ballon d’Or runner-up, has had availability issues this season due to a groin injury, but has been effective in the five games that he has played, scoring twice and providing four assists.
And Rashford has hit the ground running, coming up with three goals and five assist from his first 10 appearances.
He received some criticism for being late for a team meeting last month, but sporting director Deco has insisted they are ‘happy’ with his progress.
‘He’s on a simple loan, there’s no penalty, and if we want him, we have an option to buy,’ the Portuguese legend told Mundo Deportivo last month.
‘It’s too early to talk about decisions for next season, but what matters is that we’re happy with him. What we thought he could bring to us, he’s bringing.
Rashford cited Yamal as a reason for why he wanted to join Barcelona, but he has been thriving while the youngster has been injured
‘He’s a very high-level player. He exploded very early, then he had great seasons at United, then he had years of more complicated management with changes of coaches, and perhaps he struggled too because they demanded a lot of things from him there. But we’re happy with him – that’s the most important thing.
‘These aren’t decisions for now. Now it’s time to focus on the games to come. A decision will be made, but that’s not being discussed right now. There’s a contract between the clubs but it has to be discussed.’
Barcelona opted to make a move for Rashford after missing out on Luis Diaz, who eventually joined Bayern Munich from Liverpool in a deal worth £65m.
Rashford is understood to have sacrificed 15 per cent of his £315,000-a-week salary to get his dream move to Barca.
Barca have an option to buy clause reported to be around £27million.
