How Flick masterminded Barca’s Clasico win

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The coach’s managerial acumen came to the fore

Half-time at the Santiago Bernabeu in El Clasico. Real Madrid 0-0 Barcelona

It had been a competitive half where alarm bells were rung quite repeatedly for the away side every time Vinicius Jr. and Kylian Mbappe set off behind the opponents’ defence, looking to exploit the infamous high line deployed by Barcelona’s back-four. The relentless pursuit looked set to continue in the second 45 as well.

Full-time at the Santiago Bernabeu in El Clasico. Real Madrid 0-4 Barcelona.

So how did Barcelona go from being put under pressure to catching the speedy Real Madrid strike duo offside for the entirety of the first-half and then grabbing the game by the scruff of the neck and tearing their rivals apart with incredible ease in the second?

Enter Hans-Dieter Flick.

Straight out of the tunnel for the second-half, Flick rolled his dice when he subbed off Fermin Lopez for Frenkie de Jong and pushed Pedri up as the number 10. And boy didn’t it pay off handsomely.

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For all of the talk pre-game about Barcelona’s ridiculous high line under Hansi Flick and how Vinicius and Mbappe would have a field day running behind the likes of Pau Cubarsi and Inigo Martinez, that initially looked set to happen and the first-half was ridden with such scares.

Barcelona had almost no control over the game with the ball at their feet and Real Madrid found a way to hit long time and again to their pacy forwards.

While it is no secret Flick’s Barcelona embraces the chaos rather than averts it, this kind of game-state suits Madrid’s strengths as well to a great extent. Should it continue, walking out of the Bernabeu unscathed and undefeated would be easier said than done.

Kudos to the coach, he knew that. Going toe-to-toe against Real Madrid in a battle for scraps would suit Los Blancos more than any team in the world. Introducing Frenkie for an agent of chaos in Fermin Lopez changed all that.

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Don’t get me wrong, Fermin is a real asset for Barcelona. However, most of his strengths lie in the work he does off the ball.

In that game, in that particular moment of time, Barcelona needed a sense of control and order to their game and fielding Frenkie alongside a warrior in Marc Casado in midfield meant the double-pivot was equipped to prize open Madrid’s defence with efficient circulation of the ball, all while Barcelona’s bite remained intact.

It also let Pedri loose to distort any sort of organization that Real Madrid had. If they had any.

What followed next, was Barcelona exuding dominance over their rivals in white with a superior build-up structure thanks to Frenkie’s quality and increased fluidity up front with Pedri now combining with Europe’s most potent attacking trio in Raphinha, Robert Lewandowski and Lamine Yamal.

The shackles came off and the floodgates opened for Barcelona to slam-dunk four on the reigning Champions of Europe. At their home.

This is the effect of a great coach.

Flick is already the pioneer when it comes to playing high-risk, high reward football with his incredibly well-drilled and well documented high-line.

But now the German has shown how incredibly astute his football brain really is, showing off his in-game management to give his side the edge when the going gets tough.

With all due respect to the previous management, this was one of the few complaints against Xavi Hernandez’s Plan-A coaching.

Utilizing the full potential of his squad, the varying profiles made available to him, is the very thing that propels Flick into conversations for the best coach In Europe at the moment.

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While his half-time substitution changed the game in his favour, Flick bringing on Dani Olmo for Casado after the second goal is also a testament to his coaching acumen.

During Real Madrid’s midweek fixture against Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League, the visitors were flying high and dry with a 2-0 lead heading into the break, only to see it blow up in their faces due to the naivety of Nuri Sahin making an ultra-defensive change in the second half.

That can never be Hansi Flick.

He knew how dangerous two-goal leads are against momentum sides like Madrid. Opting to sit back and defend the lead, lulled into a false sense of security is a tragedy waiting to strike.

Bringing on Olmo for Casado actually sent out a message for the Catalans to push and help themselves to some more goals. Surprise, surprise, Yamal and Raphinha joined the party too.

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This display of managerial brilliance extends to the continental stage as well.

After an incredible first half with Barcelona leading 3-1 against the ominous Bayern Munich, Flick applied the same El Clasico potion to the midfield in the second as Barcelona ran out 4-1 winners, extracting vengeance and banishing their demons in Europe with a sublime performance.

During Barcelona’s biggest week of the season so far, against the biggest tests they could possibly face, Hansi Flick’s Barcelona passed with flying colours, making the doubters doubt and instilling fear in those to come next.

Make no mistake about it, the German’s presence in the dug-out is the single biggest reason for the good times the club is enjoying at the moment.

And God hasn’t it been so long!? Simply put, Hansi Flick has been the signing of the summer for Barcelona.

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The answer to Real Madrid’s signing of Kylian Mbappe.

I said it before as well, as the world was blinded by the glitter of Real Madrid’s Galactico 3.0, it was a golden opportunity for Flick to build a Barcelona team in his image without the unnecessary drama and eyes that have plagued the club before.

Hansi Flick took the opportunity with both hands and then some.

And now all eyes are on Barcelona.

Master Flick. Master Switch.

Source: barcablaugranes.com