New Delhi: Real Madrid could only manage to delay the inevitable for 24 hours with a last-minute winner against Mallorca. If not for Jacob Ramon’s 95th-minute goal, Barcelona would have been crowned La Liga champions on Wednesday. Perhaps, fate wanted Barca to do the job themselves and celebrate at the home ground of their crosstown rivals, Espanyol, a day later.
A brace from Lamine Yamal – the 17-year-old La Masia sensation – sealed a 2-0 win for Barcelona and a 28th La Liga title at the home of their fierce rivals. The league trophy was Barcelona’s third title in the 2024-25 season, in addition to the Copa del Rey and the Spanish Super Cup, which completed a remarkable domestic treble.
After two trophyless campaigns under club icon Xavi, Barcelona hired German manager Hansi Flick to change the fortunes of the club and return it to its glory days. Despite a proven track record following a successful spell at Bayern Munich, Flick was tasked with a near-impossible job of not only bringing the club back to winning ways but also getting the iconic club out of the mire.
Barcelona’s last two seasons have been marred by turmoil, turnarounds, financial difficulties, the influence of agents and a lack of trust between the manager Xavi and Joan Laporta.
The off-the-pitch struggles translated onto the field with their season blighted by individual mistakes, buckling under pressure and failing to close the games.
Flick, who took the job knowing anything less than a title, let alone three titles, will be considered a failure, irrespective of inheriting the worst set of circumstances.
For the German manager to fix the issues, he needed to identify them first. And identiy he did.
Rebuilding trust and restoring confidence
Among several issues, Flick had to fix was restoring the confidence of the players who were performing well below expectations. Proven performers like Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha and Frenkie de Jong were struggling with confidence issues, mainly due to the lack of trust they had from their former coach, Xavi.
Raphinha, brought to the club amidst much fanfare, hardly got a game where he featured for more than 60 minutes. Meanwhile, Lewandowski was made to play against his predatory nature.
There was a feeling of discontent among the top players, including De Jong, who was on the verge of being offloaded due to their financial plight.
Flick sensed the discontent and restored their confidence by convincing the three about their importance. With x1
With self-belief regained, Lewandowski has scored a league high 25 goals, while Raphinha has amassed 18 goals.
Harnessing the power of youth
Flick inherited a team where the club’s talented youth was not at the centre of the team plans, and not given the deserved recognition.
While the club’s youngsters from the famed La Masia academy rose through the ranks during Xavi’s stint but the decision to promote the youth in the first team was purely based on the fragile financial situation of the club.
Flick made the youngsters feel the decision to pick them was based on merit and not circumstance.
Under Gavi, Yamal, Alejandro Balde (21), and Marc Casado (also 21) found the wings of freedom with the approach of the German unshackling them and allowing them to express themselves on the field.
Flick’s genius move to allow the youngsters to pick the dressing-room music went a long way in building a bridge of trust between the manager and the players.
The German’s trust was repaid fully as performances and attitude improved drastically with a youthful and carefree style of play.
“Flick has a large part of this title,” Pedri, one of the young heroes of Barcelona’s title-winning campaign, said after winning the title at Espanyol. “He completely changed the team, and this season is one to be remembered.”
Yamal gave a glimpse of his brilliance even before the club season began, starring for his national team Spain in the European Championship win.
He carried his fantastic form into Barcelona’s season and slowly became the orchestrator of the attack.
Yamal was instrumental in several comebacks and one of the key reasons why Barcelona remarkably one all four clasicos against Real Madrid – two in the league, the cup final and the Spanish Super Cup.
The second goal against Espanyol summed up his sensational season, symbolising the brilliance with which he has bamboozled the defenders throughout the season. Eight goals and 13 assists don’t tell the full story of Yamal’s impact, for it goes beyond the numbers.
Discipline and punctuality
Every manager has obsessions. Flick’s was punctuality and discipline. His zero-tolerance policy for the latecomers set the tone for a disciplined bunch of players. Defender Jules Kounde was left on the bench thrice for being late for meetings. Goalkeeper Inaki Pena also found himself dropped to the bench for Barcelona’s Supercopa semi-final win over Athletic Club for arriving late for a team meeting.
Flick also banned the designer clothes, which are adored by the footballers and instructed the players, even the directors, to turn up to away matches in club attire.
By doing this, Klopp sent a message about team unity and professionalism, also emphasising the importance of a collective focus on the team’s image.
Hansi Flick’s appointment as Barcelona manager marked a turning point in the team’s history. He revitalised the team by restoring player confidence, empowering the youth, leading to a domestic treble – La Liga, Copa del Rey, and the Spanish Super Cup. His emphasis on discipline and team unity further solidified Barcelona’s success. Football Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
