Barcelona are coming off a season where they conquered Spain, while coming painstakingly close in Europe.
They enter the new campaign as the reigning La Liga and the Copa del Rey champions. Against Real Madrid, Barça went four for four in their Clásico matchups.
In the league, they claimed a monster 4-0 win at the Bernabéu, and then a 4-3 win at home in an epic come from behind performance that all but clinched the league. In the Spanish Super CUp, they demolished Los Blancos 5-2 to claim their first
trophy under Hansi Flick. In the Copa del Rey final, they made it three titles on the year behind an unforgettable extra-time goal by Jules Kounde.
Those victories over Real Madrid are what turned Hansi Flick into a club hero in his first season in charge. Every season, across all competitions, the eternal Spanish rivals are considered betting favorites to triumph. The fact that the German maestro claimed silverware, while humiliating Real Madrid in the process, made it that much more satisfying for a fanbase who feared the opposite could realistically occur.
Now, once again, Barcelona and Real Madrid are on a collision course.
Hansi Flick and his championship squad are back. Carlo Ancelotti is out, replaced by Madrid legend Xabi Alonso, who will be working with many of the same faces, and a few key additions.
From Barcelona, we expect a lot of the same, both in terms of player selection and playing style. The two new faces with an opportunity to make the biggest impact are Marcus Rashford and Joan Garcia. If Barça are to improve this season, a lot of pressure will be on Garcia and his ability to make big saves in critical moments.
From the preseason, and in their first match against Mallorca, Flick has shown that if anything, he is doubling down on his tactics. He wants his players to be courageous, take risks, and play with an attacking ferocity. That means working hard, winning the ball back with aggression, and not wasting time in getting the ball into dangerous areas.
The biggest danger for Barça, in my mind at least, is complacency. I think that’s what Flick was getting at in his frustration after the Mallorca game.
It’s not just about coming out on top, but building a mentality of being ruthless, in order to put games away early when you can. In the golden age of Messi, Xavi, and Iniesta, that’s what the team did best, and it gave them the capacity to go the distance in the marathon that is modern football.
We know Barcelona will create chances. The question is whether they become more efficient at putting them away, especially in the early stages of the games. As exciting as come-from-behind victories are, a more mature Barça this season should be one that’s more clinical offensively, and more careful defensively. The two legs against Inter Milan in the Champions League final come to mind here.
As for Real Madrid, there is plenty of reason to be excited about Xabi Alonso.
He’s certainly more hands on than Carlo Ancelotti, although this could be a risk as much as it is an opportunity. One thing we saw right away from Real Madrid in their opener against Osasuna was a team that was giving more effort defensively. While in the past they were content to let the other team have the ball, feeling they could simply do damage on the counter, this version of Real Madrid looks like they’ve been given the assignment to press, and then be comfortable playing in possession.
The work rate looks to be up. The question is whether Xavi Alonso can keep his players from reverting back to old habits.
As for new players, Real Madrid have an improved back line.
The standouts in game one were Dean Huijsen and Álvaro Carreras, the new center-back and left-back signings respectively.
Last season, in large part because of injury, but also because of poor planning, the defense was a liability.
Huijsen looks ready for prime time in that he’s both smart and aggressive. He’s calm, picks his moments, while not afraid of going in for the intervention.
Carreras is a player Barcelona is very familiar with. At Benfica, whom the Blaugrana faced three times in the Champions League, he caused them huge problems. For Real Madrid, you should expect him to be an upgrade at the position, and alongside new right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold, a threat going forward.
It’s hard to predict who will come out on top, but the pressure is on Barça to proactively fight to keep the throne.
Real Madrid look to be new and improved. The best way to put them back in their place is to stay consistent week in and week out, and see if cracks start to show for them.
Then, on October 26, at the Bernabéu, we’ll get our first look at Hansi Flick versus Xabi Alonso in their first head to head clash.
By then, we should know who has the upper hand. But in the end, expect this season to come down to the wire, and decided by the smallest of margins.
