SCARONE'S DEBUT FOR BARCELONA
F.C. BARCELONA — OSASUNA 5:1 (1:1)

After having created an exceptional image for the whole of Europe in 1924, in addition to having made excellent matches on Spanish soil, especially in Barcelona, ​​Héctor Scarone, the famous 1924 Olympic champion, hailed by many as the best player in the world, would play for F.C. Barcelona at the beginning of 1926. At first, Scarone did not expect what was to come, because the supporters, perhaps, did not receive a foreigner so well, even though he was a genius of the highest level in the history of football. The debut match was scheduled for 21/02/1926, against the modest Osasuna. Some supporters, however, felt that Scarone should not debut soon, as it would hinder the formation of the Blaugrana team for the Spanish tournament. Nevertheless, despit not having enough time to adapt, the Uruguayan star's debut in the friendly match against the red opponent was confirmed.

At that time, the F.C. Barcelona had a formidable team, most notably the exceptional Hungarian goalkeeper Ferenc Plattkó and the sublime line of forwards. Héctor Scarone, due to his exceptional versatility, was positioned as centre-half. In front of him, there were exceptional names in continental football, such as Paulino Alcántara, Vicente Piera, and especially Josep Samitier.

Upon entering the field, Scarone was greeted with applause by the supporters of the Blaugrana team.


Friendly match: 21/02/1926, Sunday.
F.C. Barcelona — Osasuna 5:1 (1:1)
Place: Camp de les Corts, Barcelona — Referee: Villena
Attendance: ?

F.C. Barcelona.
Coach: Jack Dumby.
XI: Plattkó — Planas, Surroca — Torralba, Scarone, Carulla — Piera, Arnau, Samitier, Alcántara, Sagi.

Osasuna
Coach: ?
XI: Osés — Abascal, Juanin — Salvador, Urquizu, Aris — Goiburu, Luzarreta, Miqueo, Gurruchagi, Murguito.

Goals: Alcántara(3, 15min; 51min; 67min) and Arnau(2, 65min; 80min) — Goiburu(1).

After a pass from Arnau, Paulino Alcántara, through a formidable shot, in the 15th minute, scores the first goal of the match.

51th minute: Scarone passes to Arnau. The inside right passes the ball to Alcántara who advances towards the opponent's goal. Paulino gets close to Osés, shoots and scores Barcelona's second goal.

65th minute: Musterós shoots very well, but the ball bounces off Abascal. However, Arnau, due to his opportunism, shoots towards the goal without any chance of defending.

Two minutes later, Alcántara scores the fourth goal for the Blaugranas.

The fifth goal comes at the end of the match. After a corner, Arnau ends up the scoring for Barcelona. After that, the match lost any interest.


The first half of the match was somewhat of a surprise for spectators at Camp de les Corts, as Osasune's fast-paced and enthusiastic play was matched through their quick attacks. The visiting team's defense, in addition, managed to contain the advances of F.C. Barcelona. However, that only lasted in the first half, as Osasune couldn't hold the same pace in the second half.

On the other hand, the F.C. Barcelona, ​​as much as they were based on their speed and determination characteristic of the Latinos, had an immense technical quality and, in a way, managed to divide the physical and technical attributes very well. The Blaugrana team, moreover, managed to make their individualities stand out in the match, especially Paulino Alcántara.

BLAUGRANA

After a not so impressive first half, largely due to the initial injury to Josep Samitier, who remained on the field until the end of the first half, F.C. Barcelona leveraged their performance in the second half, more precisely after Paulino Alcántara had scored the second goal. Rafael Musterós replaced Josep Samitier.

The goalkeeper and the line of full-backs did well, mainly Ferenc Plattkó and Josep Planas.

After Ramon Torralba was the highlight of the half-back line in the first half, right after F.C. Barcelona changed to a more attacking side, Héctor Scarone was able to demonstrate his more notorious skills. In fact, in the second half the Blaugrana team had a much more offensive half-back line than in the first half.


MATCH REPORT: We are only going to comment on this point, albeit briefly. Our concise impression is that Scarone is much, much better as forward than as half-back. The great moments of brilliance of him, yesterday, were when Barcelona dominated, he was able to contribute to the maintenance of dominance, magnificently passing to the forwards. On the other hand, whenever Osasuna attacked, his defensive work was rarely brilliant. And on one occasion as well as another, Scarone shone by not letting the ball be snatched, but rarely did he stand out, snatching it from the opponent.


The forward line was not that brilliant, only Paulino Alcántara, through his frequent incisive runs in the free space and due to his brilliant shots, was a major highlight. Some plays by the wingers — Vicente Piera & Sagi Barba — were well executed, but nothing too brilliant. Patrici Arnau scored two goals, but had a performance considered below the other three mentioned forwards. Rafael Musterós didn't show much.