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| July 29, 2003 | Tuesday | Jumadi-ul-Awwal 28, 1424 |
Ronaldinho wins praise on Barcelona debut
MADRID, July 28: Ronaldinho won praise from Barcelona coach Frank Rijkaard after making an eye-catching debut in a penalty shoot-out victory over Juventus on Sunday.
Ronaldinho, signed from Paris St Germain in a deal worth up to 30 million euros ($34.40 million), was upstaged slightly by Argentine Javier Saviola, who scored both Barcelona goals in a match that finished 2-2 at full-time.
The 23-year-old Brazilian was a constant threat in his second-half run-out, though, and scored from the penalty spot as the Catalans sneaked a 6-5 shoot-out win.
“Ronaldinho did well,” Rijkaard told reporters after the match in Foxboro, Massachusetts.
“I liked the way he played because he worked for the team. He has the right mentality, he worked hard and was aggressive in one-on-one situations.”
Rijkaard, making his own debut at the helm after replacing Radomir Antic last month, was able to field four of his five new signings, with only Mexican centre-back Rafael Marquez missing through injury.
Turkish international keeper Rustu Recber was faultless in his first-half performance, as Barcelona went in 2-0 up at the break.
Portuguese teenager Ricardo Quaresma played 75 minutes of the game, improving on the right wing after a nervous start, while Spaniard Luis Garcia was solid on the left of midfield after coming on in the second half.
For Barcelona, the only disappointment was the loss of concentration at the end that allowed Juventus to come back and draw with goals from Marco Di Vaio and Fabrizio Miccoli.
Barca’s pre-season tour of the United States continues with games against AC Milan in Washington on Wednesday and Manchester United in Philadelphia on Aug 3.
Patrick Kluivert should be able to join the squad for the remaining two games, after being turned away from Boston’s Logan airport when the squad flew in on Friday.
The Dutch international was denied entry as he was not in possession of a special visa required because of his conviction in 1996 for causing death by dangerous driving in the Netherlands. —Reuters
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