Barça’s tactical shakeup sparks 5-0 rampage by halftime—but one star’s struggles threaten their redemption arc
Barcelona delivered a brutal performance to crush Valencia, with the scoreboard already showing a 5-0 lead by halftime. Manager Hansi Flick’s lineup gamble paid off—but goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny’s shaky form remains a concern.
Anyone who watched Barcelona dismantle Valencia and then glanced at LaLiga’s standings would struggle to understand how this team isn’t dominating the league. The ruthless 7-1 thrashing executed by Flick’s squad was a thing of brutal beauty—depending on which side you’re on. There’s no team more thrilling, relentless, or explosive than Barça. Consistency, however, is another story. But when they’re in sync, the Catalans seem unbeatable.
Barcelona tested on all sides
Fresh off a last-gasp Champions League escape against Benfica in Lisbon, Flick faced a critical LaLiga test against Valencia. The Spanish Super Cup, Copa del Rey, and European competitions had masked Barça’s domestic woes: they came into the game 10 points behind league leaders Real Madrid, having earned just six points from their last 24. Their last league win dated back to November 3 against Espanyol—before Black Friday.
Flick shook things up. He kept Szczesny in goal despite his midweek blunder and benched Ronald Araújo, Gavi, and Robert Lewandowski. The changes came on a day when Pedri was ruled out due to gastroenteritis.
The German’s plan worked better than expected. Barcelona’s first-half hurricane of goals—one of the most dominant displays in recent memory—proved Flick right.
Valencia stunned by Barcelona’s changes
Valencia had no answer for Barça’s new-look lineup. Frenkie de Jong struck first in the 2nd minute off an assist from 16-year-old Lamine Yamal. Ferran Torres added a second by the 8th minute, and Raphinha made it 3-0 before the 15th mark, finishing a sublime pass from Fermín López. López himself then blasted in a fourth goal, courtesy of a pinpoint through ball from Pau Cubarsí.
Szczesny, another of Flick’s contentious lineup choices, nearly gifted Valencia a penalty with a reckless challenge—but fortune favored Barça. VAR ruled the play began with a foul by Valencia’s José Gayà on Jules Koundé. To cap the first-half humiliation, Yamal carved through Valencia’s defense, setting up Raphinha for a shot that rattled the crossbar. López pounced on the rebound with a technical volley to make it 5-0. Valencia looked lost; Barcelona were a steamroller.
For Valencia, the match felt never ending from the opening minutes. After halftime, Barça made it clear they weren’t easing up. Raphinha, López, and De Jong played as if they were chasing a comeback, not protecting a lead.
To their credit, Valencia never gave up, and also never gave in to the temptation of breaking the game up by playing dirty. And they did pick up a consolation goal when Szczesny botched a routine save, allowing Hugo Duro to tap in during the scramble.
Raphinha left the field to a standing ovation from Barcelona fans, with the Valencia players wondering whether to join in.
But for Valencia what came next actually might have been worse than what had come before. Because when Raphinha went off, Lewandowski came on. The Polish striker, trailing Kylian Mbappé in the Pichichi race (LaLiga’s top scorer award), netted Barça’s sixth—their 100th goal this season—with another assist from López, who played like an unstoppable machine right up to the final whistle.
The challenge now for Barcelona? Learning to win without needing this level of perfection.