Hansi Flick has set his sights on an unprecedented milestone for Barcelona’s final match of the season at the Spotify Camp Nou against Betis
, calling the chance to achieve a perfect home record “a great objective.”The newly-crowned La Liga champions have already locked up the league title, but motivation remains high heading into Sunday’s clash against Real Betis.
A win on Sunday means Barcelona will become the first team in modern La Liga history to win all 19 home games in a 20-team season. The
last Spanish side to manage a flawless home campaign was Real Madrid back in 1985-86, but that was during a shorter, 17-game home schedule.
Achieving this 100% record places Flick’s squad in incredibly exclusive company across Europe. In the 21st century, Juventus is the only club from Europe’s top five leagues to finish a perfect home domestic season, achieving the feat during their 2013-14 Serie A campaign.
In the Premier League, Manchester City, Manchester United, Chelsea, and Liverpool have historically fallen just one victory short of perfection.
Barcelona and Real Madrid both have come close, especially around the beginning of the last decade. Under Pep Guardiola, Barcelona got 18 home wins in 2009-10, 16 wins in 2010-11, 17 wins in 2011-12. Tito Vilanova got 18 home wins in his lone season in charge. Luis Enrique got 16 in 2014-15.
José Mourinho achieved 16 wins while in charge of Madrid in 2011-12, and he also had 16 wins the season prior. Despite never winning La Liga, Manuel Pellegrini’s Real got 18 wins at home in 2009-10. More recently, Carlo Ancelotti achieved 16 home wins in 2023-24 with Real.
It will not be easy to break the record, of course. And it’s Pellegrini himself who stands in the way of breaking his shared record of home wins. Real Betis arrives in Catalonia completely pressure-free, having already secured a fifth-place finish and qualification for next season’s UEFA Champions League.
Betis is currently riding a seven-game unbeaten streak in La Liga, though their away form isn’t the strongest.
Flick confirmed that Frenkie de Jong is officially ruled out after feeling unwell, and while they are waiting on Marcus Rashford, the German coach expects the forward to be available. It will be a different XI than the one that stumbled against Alavés, including Joan García returning between the posts and Andreas Christensen getting some expected minutes.
“We know we are playing against a fantastic team, very stable in recent years, with great players who can decide matches,” Flick said during his pre-match press conference. “We are in good shape and we want to win.”
The match will double as a farewell for Robert Lewandowski, who recently announced his departure from the club.
