Barca hierarchy point finger at player rather than Flick following result crisis

It looked as if Barcelona had righted the ship against RCD Mallorca last week with a 5-1 win away from home that reminded of their early season form in the second half. Yet a 2-2 draw with Real Betis on Saturday made it just one win in 5 games, and brought back the significant concern about their side.

According to Sport, the Barcelona hierarchy have lost no faith in Hansi Flick’s methodology. They believe that rather than the German perhaps needing to tweak his method, it is the players that need to step up their performances to return to form. The feeling is that after their excellent showings against Bayern Munich and Real Madrid, there was a mental relaxation that is punishing the side.

The coaching staff believe that while playing more directly is a tool in their box, the Barcelona players need to play out of pressure with quality and ‘pausa‘ more often. Meanwhile the hierarchy feel that the likes of Jules Kounde, Dani Olmo, Robert Lewandowski and Raphinha have all dropped their level lately, and are not where they should be. Others within the club also point to the lack of alternatives in the squad, and the drop-off between starters and substitutes being too significant to rest often, which has run down their stars mentally.