Andreas Christensen was back in the Barcelona starting XI on Tuesday in the Copa del Rey win over Guadalajara in what was a very welcome return to action for the Dane.
The defender had only made three starts for Barcelona this season before the game, with injuries once again affecting his involvement.
Christensen may have expected more game time recently, particularly with Ronald Araujo having taken a temporary absence of leave, but Flick has preferred to use Gerard Martin at center-back alongside
Pau Cubarsi.
Yet Christensen certainly showed his worth on Tuesday night albeit against a lower-tier opposition. As well as helping Barca keep a first clean sheet away from home since August, he also popped up with the all-important first goal to break the deadlock.
“It was nice to score, but for me the most important thing is to play another match. A lot of time has passed and I always enjoy playing with these players,” he said afterwards.
“The key today was patience. Sometimes it’s difficult to maintain quality, and we had to be patient and stay motivated. We had to take every situation seriously. That was the most important thing for us, and I’m happy it turned out well.
“We tried to control the game, but sometimes it’s very difficult. A cold night, the pitch… I’m happy with the win and the mentality we showed today.”
Flick also seemed happy with Christensen, hailing his “fantastic” performance as the Copa del Rey holders booked their spot in the next round.
Will we see more of Christensen now? It’s hard to say given that Martin is clearly a strong favorite of Flick’s, but Christensen certainly did his chances of more game time no harm at all by a fairly flawless showing on Tuesday night.
