Flick: ”After the break, we will fight for all titles”

A night to forget in Seville

The match against Sevilla was undoubtedly the worst for Barça since Hansi Flick took over the bench. Visibly upset throughout the match, the German coach even struck the bench hard after the third goal from the Andalusian team. The defeat meant losing the lead and left the team with two consecutive losses and very negative feelings.

Flick´s self-criticism after the match

With a serious expression and a look of frustration, Flick faced the mixed zone without hiding his team´s poor performance: ”In the first half, it wasn´t good for us, they played 1 against 1 and very aggressively. We had no solutions, it´s not a good thing. But in the second half, I really appreciate the team´s reaction. I don´t want to talk about the two goals, we don´t want excuses. We have to focus on the first half, but the most important thing is the reaction. This defeat is important, and after the break, we will fight for all titles. That´s what we want, we are a good team.” The coach wanted to downplay the drama of what happened, although he acknowledged the blow of such a heavy defeat: ”I´m not angry, everyone has seen the situation. I don´t want to argue about it, in the second half we were good. Now we have to continue. We don´t like losing 4-1, it´s tough, but in the end, it´s just a game,” added the German.

Acknowledgment of mistakes and looking to the future

The midfielder Pedri also expressed his discomfort about the lack of intensity in the first half, something Flick openly acknowledged, although he tried to maintain an optimistic tone: ”Yes, we lacked intensity, but I also think positively. We have to analyze the first half of the match. I won´t say anything about the referee.” During the press conference, the coach repeatedly stated that the key was in the mistakes of the first half. Despite this, he assured that he was focused on improving and learning from recent setbacks: ”In the first half, we made big mistakes, but in the end, it´s how we always play. We had the chance to score the second goal, the match changed, but that´s the past. I said it after PSG, we have to learn from these matches and we will. After the break, several players will return, we need them. That´s important. We lost, we accept it, and we look forward.”

”It wasn´t the worst defeat”

When asked if he considered this the hardest setback since he took charge of the azulgrana team, Flick was clear in his response: ”Today we have to accept the defeat, but I see it positively. There are negative things we need to change, we haven´t been able to control the match with the ball. We have to play at a better level, but the worst defeat was the semifinals in Milan. We tried everything. Football is about scoring goals, it´s easy to explain. Today we weren´t able to, but we had chances. The result is not good, but heads up. Today I´m not as disappointed as I was in Vallecas.”

The break, an opportunity to regain feelings

With several players going off to their respective national teams, the coach believes that the competitive break could be beneficial: ”After the break, you can ask me if it helps us or not, but I think it´s good for us now. Let the players go, it´s a different atmosphere. This is good, when they return, we will try. We will work hard to get back to our level. This is the most important thing.”

An immediate challenge on the horizon

The Barcelona heads into the international break after two consecutive defeats and the loss of the lead. Flick will need to take advantage of these weeks to redirect the situation and regain confidence, as in three weeks the azulgranas will visit the Santiago Bernabéu to play a Clásico that promises to be crucial in the fight for LaLiga.