FC Barcelona coach Hansi Flick said he “doesn’t care what happens” in Madrid following his side’s … More
FC Barcelona coach Hansi Flick said he “doesn’t care what happens” in Madrid following his side’s 1-1 La Liga draw with Real Betis on Saturday.
Real Madrid’s shock 2-1 loss to Valencia gave Barca a golden opportunity to extend its lead at the summit to six points, which obviously wasn’t taken as a consequence of the Betis stalemate.
Reacting post-match, Flick – who had to restrain Raphinha – looked on the bright side by revealing that he had “told the players that there is one game less and we have one more point”.
“We gave everything and we couldn’t do it. We have not been lucky in front of goal. I’m happy with what we saw in the second half,” he added, stressing that “you have to accept the days you don’t manage to score.”
“Of course the three points would have been better and brought us closer to the La Liga title, but I don’t care what happens in Madrid. I care about Barça and we are only focused on ourselves,” Flick also said.
“Now what I’m left with is the positive. We have one more point, we are in April and we are in a good situation,” Flick went on, before saying that the atmosphere in the locker room – highlighted by his celebration with goalscorer Gavi – is “very important”.
“Everything we’ve created is exceptional. Not only the team, but also the coaching staff. This is a family and it’s very good to see,” he stated.
Ahead of a vital Champions League quarterfinal first leg clash with Borussia Dortmund in Montjuic on Wednesday, Flick provided an update on injured center back Inigo Martinez.
“On Monday he will train and on Wednesday he will be fine to play,” Flick said, before explaining that he took Pedri off because “he plays everything, like [Alejandro] Balde and [Frenkie] De Jong”.
“We have to take care of all of them and that’s why I made the changes, which were more of a physical issue than a tactical one. Although there was also some tactics in it, such as putting Gavi in Pedri’s position, where he is improving a lot,” Flick concluded.
While Pedri and De Jong appear to be certs, it now remains to be seen if Gavi gets the nod for Dortmund.
