Barcelona manager Hansi Flick has admitted that managing squad depth and leaving players on the bench is his toughest assignment this season, despite his team sitting top of La Liga with 21 points from seven matches.
The Hardest Part of Managing Barcelona
Fresh off a 3-1 comeback victory over Sevilla at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan, Flick addressed the emotional and professional challenges of handling a talent-rich roster.
“In the end, to be honest with you, for me this is the hardest thing at the moment,” Flick said, according to coverage from SPORT cited by Yahoo Sports. “I know everyone can be happy because we have enormous quality in the squad. But for me it’s not easy. When I look at the bench and see that Gavi won’t play, Xavi [Espart] can’t play, [Jules] Kounde can’t play, Wojciech Szczesny can’t play, it’s not easy.”
Flick emphasized that his choices are driven entirely by collective needs rather than personal grievances. “It’s not easy for me either because I’m close to everyone, I’m with everyone, and still I have to make these decisions. In the end, that’s how it is. I’m always thinking about the team. There is nothing personal. It’s about the team,” he added.
Gut Instinct and Selection Surprises Against Sevilla
Flick’s squad management philosophy was highlighted prior to kickoff against Sevilla when he made the surprise decision to start debutant goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic ahead of Wojciech Szczesny. The manager had previously hinted that the Polish shot-stopper occupied the second-choice role, but explained that his latest selection came down to intuition rather than data analysis.
“As you know, sometimes it’s not only about analysing everything. Sometimes it’s also about the feeling,” Flick said after the match. “I think my feeling today was like this, so I spoke with the coaches and then we made this decision. So it’s about the feeling. It doesn’t mean that we analysed it and decided that we don’t believe in Szczesny or anything like that. But for me, today, I think this was the right decision.”
Livakovic turned in a confident display between the posts as Barcelona overturned an early 19th-minute deficit caused by Youssouf Fofana. Raphinha equalized just three minutes later from an Andreas Christensen pass before netting twice more after the break to complete a hat-trick, aided by two assists from Lamine Yamal. Pau Cubarsi and Eric Garcia subsequently locked down the backline to secure a seventh consecutive league win, leaving the club with a three-point cushion at the summit.
Upcoming Schedule and Fixtures
Barcelona now pause domestic competition for a three-week international break. La Liga action resumes when Flick’s side face Getafe on October 10, ahead of a crucial UEFA Champions League fixture against Galatasaray on October 13.
