Atlético disaster sparks fallout: Flick fumes, Barça stars hit back | OneFootball

The 0-4 defeat in the Spanish Cup at Atlético Madrid has apparently caused major waves internally at FC Barcelona.

Barça was already trailing by four goals at halftime. The defense was extremely shaky, while Diego Simeone’s team took chance after chance to score against the Catalans.

According to a report by the Spanish newspaper ‘Sport’, the German coach of the La Liga leaders completely lost his temper in the locker room afterwards. The report states that the coach “exploded” and told his players they should actually be “even further behind.” Anyone who watched the match knows: the coach wasn’t entirely wrong.

Even though the second half was more stable and Barça didn’t concede any more goals, the football gods did their part. Aside from a disallowed offside goal, which was reviewed for several minutes, and a red card in the final phase, not much else happened. So at least in the first leg, Barça was left with a hefty thrashing by the Madrid side.

A few days after the match, reports from ‘Mundo Deportivo’ and ‘The Athletic’ claim that a meeting took place between the coaching staff and the team, during which things reportedly got heated again. 

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At this crisis meeting, Hansi Flick accused his stars of lacking intensity and the right attitude in the first half of the cup match. However, the criticism was reportedly immediately returned. According to ‘The Athletic’, the Barça players questioned Flick’s tactics!

We all know it: the high defensive line and the associated offside trap that can drive opponents crazy—at least when it works. But if you play with fire and it goes wrong, even Barça’s star-studded squad can become a shooting gallery, as happened against Atlético.

According to the English newspaper’s report, the players specifically questioned this risky style of play. In important matches like a cup semifinal or in the Champions League, they would prefer a less risky approach.

It remains exciting to see whether Team Pragmatism or the advocates of the uncompromising offside trap will prevail in the end. In any case, Barça still has a chance to limit the damage: the semifinal second leg against Atlético takes place on March 3, this time at home in Camp Nou.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.

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