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9 hours ago
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Halfway through his first season at FC Barcelona, manager Hansi Flick has embraced the tradition of blooding young players from La Masia, having handed debuts and first-team breakthroughs to several academy talents already.
Whether due to financial constraints or the exceptional quality of the players, the German tactician has consistently relied on La Masia since his arrival at Barcelona.
Flick’s love for La Masia
As highlighted by Mundo Deportivo, Flick’s Barcelona starting lineups in all competitions are regularly filled with players from the La Masia academy.
He has shown no hesitation in giving them opportunities, and in some cases, he has helped them make a name for themselves when the moment arose.
Under Flick’s management, Marc Bernal, Sergi Dominguez, Dani Olmo, Andres Cuenca, and Toni Fernandez have all made their debuts.
Some even count Gerard Martin and Pau Victor to be part of the academy, as they have featured for Barça Atletic in their first seasons at the club in 2023/24.
On average, Flick has fielded five academy players per match. He initially started with four: Pau Cubarsi, Alejandro Balde, Bernal, and Lamine Yamal. However, team circumstances have pushed him to rely more on the youth talent at his disposal.
La Masia Boys >#MadeInLaMasia pic.twitter.com/N0zLceFdiR
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) January 13, 2025The injury to Marc-Andre ter Stegen, which led to Inaki Pena’s promotion, the signing of Olmo, and Gavi’s recovery, have all been crucial in increasing the number of academy players in his lineups, with the figure rising to six or even seven.
The period with the most academy graduates on the pitch occurred during the matches against Alaves, Sevilla, Bayern Munich, and Real Madrid, where Flick consistently fielded six academy players, and the Espanyol game, which saw the number rise to seven (Pena, Fort, Cubarsi Balde, Casado, Lamine, and Olmo).
It is also true that Flick prefers a set core of players, which has led to repeated line-ups, and Hector Fort has not yet managed to break into the starting XI with Jules Kounde playing almost every game at right-back.
The technical decision to replace Pena with Wojciech Szczesny in some games of late has reduced the academy representation slightly.
But with Cubarsi, Balde, Casado, Gavi/Olmo, and Lamine regularly in the team, the presence of La Masia graduates remains secure, much to the pride of Barcelona supporters.
