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Barcelona return to UEFA Champions League action tomorrow night in Belgrade as they take on Crvena Zvezda in their fourth League phase match of the competition.
Even though the Blaugrana are the outright favourites for the game, the daunting atmosphere that awaits them at the Rajko Mitic Stadium could be a challenge on Wednesday night.
Addressing the same during his pre-match press conference today, Barcelona manager Hansi Flick said:
“In this new Champions League, it is very important to win. We know it will be a difficult game tomorrow, because they are a good team and they have fast strikers. The objective is to win.”
Barça have tasted great success with their high defensive line and offside trap this season, having seen 13 goals scored against them get overturned.
“Our idea is to play good football and the team is very well connected. Our line of four and the team is doing very well. It’s important to put pressure on the opposition because they want to have possession,” said Flick about the tactic.
While Barcelona have been near-faultless in most matches in recent weeks, the second half of the Catalan derby against Espanyol on Sunday saw them drop off in terms of focus and intensity, something which did not sit right with Flick.
Talking about the same today, the German tactician reflected: “We have played very well in the last month, also in the first half against Espanyol. It’s normal, these things happen. Everything seems easy and sometimes you have to accept that the team’s level drops.
“Now it’s another competition, it’s the Champions League and everyone knows how important it is to win to finish in the top eight. This is our objective. We are focused on this. We have to improve the things we didn’t do well, but we have to think positive.”
Barcelona’s track record in away games in the Champions League in recent seasons has not been the best. But Flick is not worried by the past and only wants to focus on what lies ahead, as he said:
“I don’t think about the past, I think about the future. We can’t compare the past. We want to be more successful in the Champions League and tomorrow is a good day to do it.”
Providing an update on midfield sensation Gavi and where he is at in terms of being ready to start a game after nearly a year out due to injury, Flick said:
“I spoke to him and we have decided to take it one step at a time. He will get more minutes as time goes by, and depending on how the games go. Against Espanyol, he played for a while and he is doing very well in training. He gives us more ball control.”
Having roped in Wojciech Szczesny as an emergency replacement for the injured Marc-Andre ter Stegen, Flick is yet to hand the veteran Pole his Barça debut with Inaki Pena excelling between the sticks.
Flick happy with Szczesny. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)Talking about how he is approaching the goalkeeping situation and the competition between the two players, the manager said:
“Tek [Szczesny] has trained for two months with us and when I spoke to him you can see that he is an exceptional guy. He helps Inaki and the other youngsters. It’s ideal to have him in the team.
“When we need him he will be ready. Our aim was to have a player like him with experience, who can give us stability and help the other goalkeepers.”
Flick has enjoyed a near-perfect start to life as Barcelona manager, racking up 13 wins in 15 games, with the players adapting to his style and philosophy fairly easily.
Discussing his early success at the club, the 59-year-old remarked: “Before coming here I already analysed the team and the players. We saw that we had a lot of quality. We have tried to instil a new philosophy, both in attack and defence.
“The players have understood that. The positive results have helped us. The players like this style, but there are still things to improve.”
On whether he sees Barcelona with a chance of winning the Champions League based on how things have gone so far this season, Flick replied:
“There is a lot of work to do to win the Champions League. There are very good teams who have the same objective. In the end, it’s about working hard and not talking so much.”
Earlier in the presser, Barcelona youngster Fermin Lopez praised Flick, crediting him for the improvement that the squad has made over the past three months. However, the head coach downplayed it and instead credited the whole team, saying:
“We have a great team around us. Deco has also done a great job. Working together has gone very well for us. The players are also doing very well. It’s a gem to watch them play in training.
“It’s unbelievable. At the moment everything is going well. It’s not just the youngsters, the more experienced ones are helping the youngsters and that’s how a team should work.”
Regarding the team’s current situation in the Champions League and whether he is already calculating the points needed for progression, the manager said:
“Not yet. This can change a lot. The important thing is to win games and after the game against Bayern it changed a lot. I don’t even know what position we are in.
“We have just started and when we finish we hope to be in the top eight. This is the goal and I think we can achieve it.”
Source: Mundo Deportivo
