This international break, what’s most important, is introspection on the part of Hansi Flick.
He is at a crossroads, and an important decision must be made.
In one direction, he can be stubborn and continue down the road Barcelona has been on for a long time by insisting that the problem isn’t the system, but rather the players; execution of it.
The other direction is a better route to go down. Take control and responsibility, and begin to construct a better way of playing that puts your players in a better position
to win, while keeping your opponents on their toes.
Right now, Barcelona is completely found out.
Whether you are Sevilla or PSG, or anyone in between, you are having fun if you line up against Barcelona because you know exactly what you’re going to get, and can make a gameplan to counter the predictable, and highly risky, tactics that Hansi Flick has been deploying since he arrived in the summer of 2024.
Barcelona shows their cards, giving their opponents a big advantage, and still expects to come out on top.
I’m not blaming Ronald Araujo for the penalty. I’m not blaming VAR for a crap call, even if it was. I’m not blaming Jules Kounde for a bad game, or any of the other players who were subpar on the day. There were too many to name here.
Most important, I’m not blaming injuries.
It’s really unfortunate to be without Lamine Yamal, but for Hansi Flick, nothing has been fair since the day he arrived.
To his credit, however, the manager has always kept his head down and done the work. His players, in return, have mostly modeled themselves after him, focusing on the gameplan, and doing their best to avoid distractions.
That being said, the gameplan has gradually gotten less and less effective for quite some time now. Barcelona have still found ways to win games most of the time, but it has been in spite of the tactics, not because of them.
In short, the high line offside trap has to go.
It’s not because the defensive line is bad at executing. In fact, I think you can put most of the blame on the ineffective pressure being applied from the forwards. The reality, however, is that it doesn’t look like a problem Flick can solve. Robert Lewandowski isn’t getting younger. Lamine Yamal and Marcus Rashford don’t have the temperament. Ferran Torres and Dani Olmo have simply not been good enough defensively.
When it comes to lower level La Liga teams, Barcelona is being bossed around on the regular. Little intensity, little physicality, and less desire than the other guys.
The best way to fix this is with a tactical tweak.
We’re not calling for revolution here. Neither was Thierry Henry when he critiqued Barcelona after their Champions League defeat to PSG.
It requires a simple recognition that what worked in the past was never going to work forever. In the here and now, it’s obvious to any honest observer that Barcelona is giving their opponents way too much space behind the backline to operate in. Instead, Flick has to make life harder on them, even if the change is a marginal one.
That’s the challenge ahead for Hansi Flick.
This is what separates the very good managers from the greatest in the game.
When something isn’t working, can you make adjustments to make your team a fresh, new, better version of themselves?
Excuses won’t save you. Only action will.
The time has come to look in the mirror and be the leader that everyone surrounding Barcelona knows Hansi Flick can be.
