October 21st, Saint Fermín!

FC Barcelona Thrashes Again in Europe

A resounding victory for FC Barcelona against Mendilibar’s Olympiakos, in a somewhat strange match. Looking at the scoreline, one might imagine that Hansi Flick’s team dominated the game from start to finish, but that wasn’t exactly the case. Barça showed improvement in their play, especially in terms of finishing in front of goal, and defensively they didn’t suffer too much. Although it’s true that during some stretches of the first half — and especially after Olympiakos’ penalty goal and Hezze’s red card, which we’ll discuss later — the team looked a bit uncertain and perhaps slightly nervous, after the sending-off Barça broke loose and scored four goals, with a stellar Fermín and a Rashford who arrived as the “backup” forward but has probably become the most deserving starter of them all.



Also worth highlighting is Dro’s performance, who assisted Fermín on the second goal and, despite not playing in his natural position — as he acted as a false left winger — he managed to adapt well and looked much more comfortable than in his match against Real Sociedad.

A special mention goes to Roony Bardghji. The young player was very active during the 15 minutes he spent on the pitch and assisted Fermín on the fifth goal just one minute after coming on, with a piece of skill that even Ronaldo himself would have been proud of. The player is gaining confidence, which can be seen in every match, and Hansi Flick is trusting him more and more — something that could put slight pressure on Lamine Yamal, whose recent performances have been a bit below par, though we must remember he’s just coming back from injury. Hopefully, we’ll see his best version at the Bernabéu, just as we did last season.

In short, a morale-boosting victory that gives the team confidence after the nail-biting win against Girona and the defeats to PSG and Sevilla.

Fermín Hat-trick

The player from El Campillo was undoubtedly the standout performer of the match, thanks to his hat-trick and his involvement and commitment to the team, in one of Fermín’s best performances under Hansi Flick. This makes it clear how difficult it will be for Dani Olmo to reclaim his spot once he recovers from injury. Rashford also stood out, scoring two goals and coming very close to his own hat-trick.



On the other hand, although it wasn’t his worst performance, Kounde once again struggled to find his rhythm in the competition. He was replaced by Araujo, and his position was taken over by Eric García, who partnered with Cubarsí at the heart of the defense — a duo that is increasingly looking like this season’s starting center-backs.

Too Much Controversy for a 6–1

Despite the emphatic scoreline, there were a few controversial and curious incidents worth mentioning.

The first came in the 52nd minute. Olympiakos pulled one back to make it 2–1, but the referee, following a VAR review, disallowed the goal and awarded a penalty for a handball by Eric García. It was a curious situation, as the stadium was celebrating a penalty being given *against* Barça, while Olympiakos players protested the decision — since just seconds later they had scored to make it 2–1. The explanation is simple: if Eric García’s handball hadn’t occurred, the goal would still have been ruled out for offside.



The second controversy came just a few minutes after Olympiakos’ goal, when Hezze was shown a second yellow card and sent off — a decision that Mendilibar strongly protested. And rightly so: showing a second yellow, which leads to a red card, for such a minor foul ruins the game. Yes, there was contact to the face, but it was clearly accidental and should have been just a regular foul. It was a very similar situation to the yellow card Balde received in the 23rd minute, which the referee could easily have let go. Overall, I think too many yellow cards were shown for a match that was never rough in nature.

Finally, there’s the penalty on Rashford. I think there’s no real debate here — Rashford gets to the ball first, and the goalkeeper brings him down. It’s true the contact wasn’t very strong and Rashford didn’t mind going down, but there’s no controversy since the penalty decision was the correct one.

Match in Miami Between Villarreal and FC Barcelona Suspended

Shortly before the end of the Champions League matches, news broke that the match in Miami between Villarreal and FC Barcelona had been suspended. The decision, announced by LaLiga, was due to the withdrawal of the organizing company Relevent, which cited the uncertainty that had arisen in Spain over the past few weeks. This effectively puts an end to the controversy surrounding the Miami match — though it remains to be seen whether this is the final word or if there will be another chapter in this story.



On the sporting side, Barcelona continues to monitor the injury list to see if Raphinha can recover in time for Sunday’s Clásico. Ferran Torres was included in the squad yesterday, but given how the match unfolded, no risks were taken — he’s expected to be available against Real Madrid, possibly even as a starter. Raphinha’s case, however, is more complicated, and even if he does recover in time, he’s unlikely to start in the lineup.

MVP Fermín

Second MVP award for Fermín after his stellar performance yesterday, which puts him at 8 points — sixth place in the player ranking. Rashford takes second place, adding 3 more points and climbing up to fourth in the standings. Pedri adds to his tally and remains firmly at the top of the table, while Lamine earns 1 more point, keeping him in fourth place.

Real Madrid

Sunday brings the first Clásico of the season. Both teams arrive in similar form — perhaps Barça with a few more doubts, driven by their recent performances — but Real Madrid hasn’t exactly shown a level of play far superior to their opponents throughout the season either. Looking back at last season, FC Barcelona’s dominance was overwhelming, winning all four encounters: two in La Liga, the Spanish Super Cup final, and the Copa del Rey final. FC Barcelona comes into the match with some injuries, though they’re likely to have Ferran Torres back and possibly see Raphinha feature in the second half. As for Real Madrid, the main doubt is Huijsen, who, even if he recovers, will probably not start in the lineup.



The match will be played at 4:15 p.m. on Sunday, October 26, at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium. The referee in charge of keeping peace on the pitch won’t be announced until Saturday. It will be Xabi Alonso’s first Clásico as Real Madrid’s head coach — his third big match as a manager, after losing the previous two (4–0 to PSG in the Club World Cup and 5–2 to Atlético Madrid in La Liga). For Flick, it will be his fifth encounter against Los Blancos — with a perfect record so far.

And that’s it for the second episode of Culé DNA. We’ll be back after Sunday’s Clásico to analyze the match and discuss everything that the world’s most talked-about game has brought us. Thanks for joining us, culers, and see you in the next episode.