Rafa Marquez: Ilias should get first-team chances this season

Barcelona Atletic coach Rafa Marquez spoke about Ilias Akhomach who keeps impressing once again with the reserve team. The 18-year-old scored a couple of great goals in a pre-season win over Valencia Mestalla. He followed that up with another strike in the team’s season opener against Castellon.

Marquez is clearly looking forward to working with Ilias. Furthermore, he is expecting him to get first-team chances this season:

“We are going to work with him. He has great ability and I really like the way he competes. You have to keep working on it, you have to polish it. Try that sometimes he plays easier, that he relates a little more,” he said.

“I think he’s on the right track. He has a very open mind to help him be better every day; He has a purpose and one of the main points that I have to focus on is that if he continues like this, he will surely have opportunities in the first team.”

Ilias already made his debut for the first team under Xavi. The teenager was surprisingly named in the starting XI against Espanyol in November last year and went on to make another two appearances against Mallorca and Linares in the Copa del Rey.