Barcelona have endured another dramatic season under Hansi Flick but look in good shape heading into the New Year.
The Catalans have had to cope without a host of key players in the first half of the season
but their injury problems are easing which has helped Flick’s men improve their form.
Let’s have a look at the highs and lows of the season so far:
Barcelona hit Valencia for six
Barcelona put on a show in their first home game of the season in La Liga as Valencia were hit for six in a sensational showing.
Fermin Lopez, Raphinha and Robert Lewandowski all bagged braces, while there was a first assist in Barcelona colors for Marcus Rashford.
We were also treated to the sight of Pedri wearing the captain’s armband and the skipper saying all the right things afterwards: “An honor to enjoy the captaincy again and honour the memory of Cruyff with this great win. Work, team!”
Flick described the win as a “perfect” three points after the game on a night where Barca could have even got into double figures such was their dominance.
Yamal takes over as the 10 in Betis goalfest
Barcelona delivered more thrills and spills in a goalfest against Real Betis. The Catalans ran out 5-3 winners, with two late goals from the hosts skewing the scoreline a little.
Ferran Torres was the hero with a hat-trick, while Lamine Yamal impressed in a central role and Roony Bardghji scored his first La Liga goal since joining in the summer.
Barcelona down in-form Atletico
Barcelona took on an in-form Atletico Madrid at the start of December and came from behind to take all three points and open up a four-point lead at the top of the table.
Alex Baena’s early goal was swiftly cancelled out by Raphinha, while Dani Olmo fired Barcelona ahead and promptly departed with a dislocated shoulder.
Ferran Torres then wrapped things up in stoppage time as Barcelona sealed a really important win that had Flick purring afterwards.
“I think our performance was on another level. We played against a great team. We fought together, and that’s what I saw today. It was great, fantastic,” he told the media afterwards.
And the Lows….
Misery for Barcelona in El Clasico
Barcelona beat Real Madrid every time they faced them last season under Flick but it was a different story in October when Los Blancos took the three points.
Wojciech Szczesny did manage to save a penalty from Kylian Mbappe but that was about all Barca fans had to cheer in a really disappointing display against their biggest rivals.
Goals from Mbappe and Jude Bellingham secured a 2-1 victory, while the match ended in ugly scenes as Real Madrid players went after Lamine Yamal after being angered by his pre-match comments.
Terrible night at Stamford Bridge
Arguably Barca’s worst defeat of the season came at Stamford Bridge in the Champions League as Flick’s side were well beaten by the Blues.
The game was a reality check and then some for Barca who went behind through a Jules Kounde own goal. Estevao and Liam Delap then added two more, while Ronald Araujo was sent off for two yellow cards and has subsequently decided to take some time away from the game.
Eric Garcia admitted it was a “terrible night,” while Flick’s offside trap was famously dubbed “absolutely crazy” by Alan Shearer afterwards.
Flick admitted after the game we’d see a “different” Barcelona going forward and he has been proved right.
The return from injury of crucial players such as Raphinha and Pedri has made a massive difference but this result does mean there are still big question marks over whether Barca can triumph in Europe.
Sevilla shock Barca with thrashing
Our very own Renato described this one as “quite possibly their worst game of the entire Hansi Flick Era” after watching Barcelona crash 4-1 to Sevilla at the Ramon-Sanchez Pizjuan in September.
Former Barca star Alexis Sanchez, Isaac Romero, Jose Angel Carmona and Akor Adams all scored for Sevilla, while Robert Lewandowski missed a penalty for the visitors in the second half.
The result was Barcelona’s worst defeat against Sevilla since 1951 and made it a bad week for the Catalans as it came off the back of a bad loss to PSG in the Champions League.
Flick defended his tactics afterwards and insisted that was not the problem, explaining: ”I don’t think it’s a problem with the system or the strategy. We’ve made big mistakes. We always play the same way. We can talk about many things today. Our performance in the first half wasn’t good. In the second, yes, we reacted well. I said that after the game against PSG.
The international break then came at a good time with Barca bouncing back in their next game by beating Girona 2-1.
Which Barcelona matches have you enjoyed the most so far this season? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
