Hansi Flick: Barcelona requires additional support beyond Yamal to defeat Atlético in Copa
Barcelona manager Hansi Flick states that his squad will require more than just Lamine Yamal to achieve the “impossible” in Tuesday’s Copa del Rey semifinal against Atlético Madrid.
Barça suffered a heavy defeat, losing 4-0 in the first leg of the matchup in Madrid last month, which presents a significant challenge as the two sides meet again at Spotify Camp Nou this week for the second leg.
Nevertheless, with the support of the home fans and Yamal coming off a performance where he netted his first career hat trick against Villarreal over the weekend, Flick asserts that Barça holds belief in their ability to succeed.
“The team is the priority,” Flick remarked during a press conference when asked if Yamal needs to perform at his peak for Barça to achieve an unlikely comeback.
“His performance after [scoring his first goal on Saturday] was impressive, and I am very pleased with that, but we require contributions from everyone. It’s not just about Lamine; we need all players on the field.
“We are trailing by four goals. Our aim is to make the impossible possible. That is our objective for tomorrow. We understand it will be challenging, but we never surrender.
“Maintaining a clean sheet is crucial, but we also need to trust in our abilities, to believe that we can accomplish this.”
This situation is unfamiliar for Flick, who mentions that he has never faced such a deficit in his managerial career heading into the second leg of a cup tie.
He is looking to Barça’s 4-0 victory over Borussia Dortmund last season — which was a first leg match in the Champions League — as a model for their comeback effort.
“I have not encountered this scenario before, but I am not intimidated by it,” he added.
“You must always have faith. Everyone in the stadium will be behind us. We also have a strong example: the match against Dortmund here last season, 4-0.
“In each half, we aim to score two goals. It could be one goal as well. We recognize the difficulty. We are up against a fantastic team. They caused us significant problems in the previous match.”
Barça will be without Robert Lewandowski for this match.
The Polish forward sustained a fractured eye socket against Villarreal and joins Frenkie de Jong, Gavi, and Andreas Christensen on the injury list, while Eric García is serving a suspension.
However, Barça has bolstered their squad in other areas since the first leg defeat to Atlético, with the recent returns of Pedri and Raphinha from injury, which Flick claims have revitalized his team’s performances.
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“It’s beneficial to have [Pedri back]; we will assess how many minutes he can contribute,” Flick stated.
“In the last match against Villarreal, we witnessed a completely different team. Everyone was battling, displaying a lot of intensity in our play.
“This is what we need to replicate tomorrow, playing as a cohesive unit. We must be strategic, yet approach the game with the determination to succeed.”
