Victory over Elches restores calm to Barcelona: Flick praises Yamal and Fermin Lopez
Barcelona bounced back from their El Clasico defeat last weekend, beating Elche 3-1 on Sunday night. Goals from Lamine Yamal, Ferran Torres and Marcus Rashford ensured the three points remained in Catalonia.
According to Diario AS, coach Hansi Flick gave his assessment of the match, admitting that it was not easy at all:
“I saw some things we did well, but we also have to improve. We have to fight. Today we faced an opponent who wanted the ball and it was not easy. We had to press and we did, so we scored the first two goals and created more chances.”
Barcelona had only 49% of the ball possession at the Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys, but Flick did not see this as a concern – although he admitted that he does not currently have all the right players to play according to his ideal style.
“It’s not difficult to control without Pedro. We can do that too. Pedro is an extraordinary player and we want to have him in every game, but without him we have to manage the situation. We can improve in many things, and we will. It’s three more points and we will move forward.
“It’s not easy, we have a lot of players who haven’t been able to play in the last few games. We lack quality. The last two training sessions have been very good, maybe the best of this season. We have to talk about possession – we weren’t that good in that aspect. The most important thing is the three points. We have taken a step forward and we have to be positive.”
Flick also gave an update on Lamine Yamali’s fitness, following his goal-scoring performance:
“He has to manage his injury. To train, to get the right treatment. It’s a good step for him. We can’t say he’s 100% ready. We have to manage it carefully.”
The German coach also spoke highly of Fermin Lopez, who was among the standouts in the win over Elches:
“He did a lot of good things, but like the whole team. He’s not 100% yet and he needs to improve a few things, but like everyone else. In the last few games he’s always been involved in chances and goals.”
