Lamine Yamal hogged the press spotlight in the final minutes of FC Barcelona's victory against Eintracht (2-1). For the second consecutive Champions League matchday, the Mataró-born player was substituted in the final stretch of the game and left for the bench with a displeased expression.
This time, Roony Bardghji came on in his place in the 88th minute, after receiving a yellow card that will prevent him from playing the next match against Slavia Prague. In the post-match press conference, Flick downplayed the forward's reaction, understanding that it's normal for him to never want to come off, especially in such an important match that wasn't yet decided.
"He's had a small disappointment, but he had a yellow and we needed fresh legs. It's not a problem. It is what it is. I understand him, everyone wants to play and he believes he can play 100 minutes. He's young and has a good attitude. I was a player too. I accept it," the German coach concluded.
Flick hopes the team can also win without coming from behind
Regarding the result, Hansi Flick valued Barça's reaction in the second half against an opponent who knew how to hurt them with speed in the first half. In that sense, while he was happy with the team's ability to continue coming back in complex matches, he also made clear the need to better control the opening minutes.
"I'm happy about the comeback, it shows we have a good mentality, attitude, and competitiveness. We don't give up. But it would be good to start the match by scoring one or two goals. Although, that's how it is. I appreciate what I've seen," argued the manager.He also made it clear that, for now, he is not worried about being closer or further from the Champions TOP-8. The objective is to win the remaining two matches. In the end, it will be seen whether the 16-point lead is enough or not to avoid the round of 16 playoffs.
"I haven't looked at it (the table). Right now, I'm not interested, we have to focus on ourselves and on adding six more points than we have. Goal average is certainly important. We're taking it game by game. It's not easy to play in the Champions League, all opponents can hurt you. We have to play at that level.""I'm happy, these are three important points. We're back. The match wasn't easy. We created quite a few chances and opportunities"
Flick, surprised by Koundé's goals
On the other hand, Hansi Flick expressed surprise at Jules Koundé's goals, although he understands that both headers are the result of the work done by his staff in training."I didn't expect it. His mentality is important for us. But I'm very happy. We have the space we needed. They know what needs to be done," commented the Barça coach, who also highlighted Marcus Rashford's contribution.
English came in very plugged in through Fermín López at halftime and provided the assist for the partial 1-1. "It was important that Marcus was there, because he gave us width and stretched the line. We've made two plays from set pieces. It's part of football," he pointed out.