Young Giovani Dos Santos wants his space at Barcelona

Barcelona is touring Asia and coach Frank Rijkaard is trying to put together slowly the many luxurious pieces in the team's jigsaw puzzle. It was taken for granted that the coach was going to have trouble keeping so many world-class players happy, but the emergence of Dos Santos proposes even greater competition.

 Barcelona beat Beijing Guoan by 3-0 on Sunday and Dos Santos opened the score with an impressive goal following a pass from Xavi. Andres Iniesta made it 2-0 after a pass from Samuel Eto'o, and Ronaldinho completed the score as he shot home a spectacular free kick.

 Indeed, the Catalan press insisted on Monday in comparing Dos Santos and Ronaldinho and pointing to both players as the stars of the match, giving the Barcelona fans a double reason for joy.

 "Giovani is a player who can give (the team) a different rhythm, spark and an ability to bring rivals off balance. He is a striker who is difficult to counter by rival defences given his explosiveness," the daily Sport noted.

 According to Sport, Barcelona played with "two Ronaldinhos."

   The departures of Argentine Javier Saviola and Frenchman Ludovic Giuly have left a small space that the Mexican is making the most of. However, Barcelona's list of strikers is still huge, with Thierry Henry, Eto'o, Ronaldinho, Lionel Messi, Eidur Gudjohnsen, Maxi Lopez and Santi Ezquerro, besides the Mexican and fellow youngster Bojan Krkic.

 However, ever more Barcelona fans are asking to see Dos Santos as the team's fifth attacking option, even ahead of Gudjohnsen. Meanwhile, the club is looking to transfer Ezquerro and Lopez.

 The fact is that young Dos Santos continues to make progress and there is no longer any doubt that he belongs in the first team. The current debate deals only with the ways to give the teenager more minutes in La Liga.

 Barcelona's game in Beinjing also provided evidence that Ronaldinho wants to forget his poor performance last season to return to the level he showed two years ago.

 "The Number 1 is back," the sports daily Mundo Deportivo said Monday.

DPA