Hansi Flick sends a warning to his players despite the victory against Espanyol

Hansi Flick addressed the media following FC Barcelona’s 3-1 win over Espanyol in the Catalan derby. While pleased with the overall result, he expressed concern about the team’s performance in the second half.

“A derby is always challenging. We played well in the first half, but we didn’t maintain our usual standard and lost too many balls, which hurt us later,” he noted, issuing a strong reminder to his players ahead of their upcoming match against Red Star.

“I understand some loss of concentration today, but we need to be stronger for Wednesday,” he emphasized. Flick praised the first-half concentration, particularly from younger players, but acknowledged the drop in performance in the second half, which he attributed to their strong season.

Regarding midfield competition with the return of injured players, Flick called it a “blessed problem.” He mentioned the importance of managing players like Gavi and Frenkie carefully and expressed satisfaction with Dani’s two goals, also noting Fermín’s contributions.

He explained his decision to keep Lewandowski and Lamine on the pitch for the full match and not substitute Raphinha, stating he aimed to maintain midfield stability. He refrained from elaborating on Koundé’s substitution, simply saying it was his choice, and justified Ferran Torres’ absence due to personal reasons, emphasizing that there are priorities beyond football.

Flick celebrated Dani Olmo’s two goals but noted that Olmo wasn’t fully fit yet and had only been expected to play an hour. His substitution was precautionary, unrelated to any physical issue.

Finally, he expressed confidence in his team, stating, “I don’t suffer but I’m very aware of the situation. I have great confidence in the team, and people are happy with our play.”