MD: Rashford and Ferran demand a place at the Metropolitano

The Englishman scored again and the Spaniard ended his bad run with a brace on the eve of the quarter-final second leg against Atlético de Madrid.

FC Barcelona 's victory in the derby (4-1) puts them firmly in contention for the LaLiga title , but the Blaugrana also gained confidence ahead of their Champions League quarter-final second leg against Atlético de Madrid . The dressing room knows it will be a very difficult task, and two players have staked their claim to a starting spot to earn Hansi Flick's trust in the crucial match against Los Rojiblancos. 

We're talking about Marcus Rashford (28 years old) and Ferran Torres (26), who were key players in the victory against Espanyol , scoring their goals . The Englishman scored for the second consecutive LaLiga match and now has 12 goals across all competitions, in addition to 11 assists. Without Raphinha , the attacker started in the first leg against Atlético and is a strong contender to be chosen again as the left winger. In the half-hour he played in the derby, Rashford was involved 17 times , completing all 10 of his attempted passes, taking two shots on target , and also contributing defensively with two blocked shots. A positive impact he hopes to replicate at the Metropolitano.

Ferran Torres ended his scoring drought with a brace that paved the way for victory against Espanyol . The striker scored both goals with his only two shots on target and was more involved than usual. In his 33 touches , Ferran created two chances for his teammates and only misplaced two of his 25 passes . He also successfully completed his attempted dribble and was intense in challenges with the Espanyol defenders, winning two aerial duels and recovering possession three times.

Flick has opted for Lewandowski more in the Champions League , but the manager was very pleased with Ferran 's contribution in the derby and could give him the opportunity to start at the Metropolitano in search of a comeback.

Barça will try everything to qualify for the Champions League semi-finals and Rashford and Ferran 's performances against Espanyol make them candidates to start in search of an epic comeback.