Barcelona manager Hansi Flick suffered his first defeat on Thursday as his 10-man side went down to AS Monaco. All eyes will be on Flick to see how his side reacts.
Flick met with President Joan Laporta and Sporting Director Deco after the game to discuss it, and they all agreed not to overstate the importance of a match that was heavily conditioned by such an early sending off. They felt that the side needed to learn from their mistakes, but that there is a larger margin of error in the Champions League than in La Liga.
Flick: "After 10 minutes, the sending off completely changed our game plan. These things happen and we have to accept them, but we are strong enough to bounce back in the Champions League. That's for sure."
— barcacentre (@barcacentre) September 19, 2024
That is according to MD, who say that Flick reassured the dressing room, and was satisfied with their attitude after the sending off. He is also happy that their clash with Villarreal is just around the corner, allowing them to react immediately.
However insider account Portera de Nunez added that Flick told the Barcelona squad to ‘think about what you did wrong, or what you could do better’. The German coach also encouraged his charges to ‘play easy and risk as little as possible’. His post-match team talk was conducted without any shouting or anger, despite his earlier irritation.
En el vestuario, ni un grito del señorito Flick.
"Pensad qué habéis hecho mal o qué pudisteis hacer mejor"."Hay que jugar fácil y arriesgar lo menos posible".
— La portera de Núñez (@porteranunez) September 20, 2024
Flick has so far been an example of composure, at least publicly, an added an air of sense and seriousness to the Blaugrana this season. Despite the ongoing noise off the pitch that has been a constant at Barcelona for the last five years, Flick has managed to keep the focus on football thus far. The Monaco defeat was his first setback though, and the atmosphere could swing dramatically if they were to suffer a loss to an in-form Villarreal this Sunday night.
