Flick talks Pedri, Raphinha, Araujo, Ter Stegen, Joan Garcia ahead of Barcelona vs Atletico Madrid | OneFootball

Having ended the last matchday as league leaders, FC Barcelona will be gunning to strengthen their position at the top when they face Atletico Madrid tomorrow at the Spotify Camp Nou.

Barcelona go into the game on the back of a comeback 3-1 victory over Deportivo Alaves, even though manager Hansi Flick was not completely pleased with his team’s performance after the result.

Moreover, given that Barça have come short against big teams on three occasions this term – PSG, Real Madrid, and Chelsea – Flick & co. will be gunning for a positive result against Diego Simeone’s side, who are in fine form in La Liga.

Ahead of the heavyweight clash on Tuesday night, Flick addressed the media in his pre-match press conference, discussing various topics, including his chat with Raphinha after the Alaves win.

Kicking things off, though, the Barcelona manager assessed the challenge that lies ahead of his team against Atletico Madrid, saying:

“We’re playing against a fantastic team with one of their best managers. We have to raise our level. It will be a tough game. We all have to work hard.

“If you look at the table, there are some very good teams up there ready to go. We’re in the same position. We’re getting players back. We have to raise our level.”

On the viral image and La Liga title race

Regarding Barça’s recent displays and what he thinks is missing from the team this season, Flick remarked:

“More control, we have quality, and we want to see it. I said it after the match. We made too many mistakes, we usually have the quality to control the match, and that’s what I’ve been missing in recent matches. I want to see that quality.”

An image of Flick sitting on the bench looking dejected after the full-time whistle against Alaves went viral over the weekend, with the manager then having a small conversation with captain and key player Raphinha.

Shedding light on the moment as well as the conversation, the head coach explained: “It would be a good time to win, against one of the big teams. It’s funny, the image of that match.

“I was disappointed because we lost a lot of balls, two red cards on the bench… when we scored the third, Marcus got a red card and I had spoken to him, he’s my friend, he’s the most important person I have here, and I had that conversation in my head.

All ready for Atletico Madrid. (Photo by George Wood/Getty Images)

Continuing, he added: “I wanted to take a breather, I didn’t want to argue. But I’m fine, and I’m strong for whatever the club throws at me. I’m very happy to be here. It’s normal for things to go wrong in a match like that.

“These matches affect you, you put a lot of energy into them. But then I go home and relax. I wasn’t sad or thinking about other things. We’re not at our best like last year, but we have potential.”

On asked how he felt about Barcelona now being league leaders, Flick stated: “We’re under the same pressure as last season. We said this year would be tougher because everyone wants to beat the champions.

“We’re top of the table, but we’re not playing at our best. We need to get back to that level.”

When asked about whether he followed last night’s game between Real Madrid and Girona, he added: “I didn’t see it. I got messages and knew something had happened. I got out of bed and watched the highlights. I’m just focusing on my team.”

On players and fitness

Flick then went on to confirm that key midfielder Pedri is ready to start, after making a substitute appearance vs Alaves upon returning from injury.

“Yes, he is, he can start,” the manager confirmed.

Providing an update on the fitness conditions of Raphinha and Ronald Araujo, he added:

“Raphinha is ready, but Araujo isn’t ready to play yet. We’ve taken care of Raphinha, he only did the rondo and then stopped. I’m confident he’ll be able to play the whole match.

“Ronald isn’t ready, it’s a private matter, and I don’t want to say any more. I’d ask you to respect that, it’s all I can and will say.”

When asked about the situation of Marc-Andre ter Stegen, who finally returned to group training today after being out for months, Flick remarked:

“This is not the time to talk about this. He’s not fit to play. We have to wait and see what happens next.”

Ready to start. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)

The Barcelona manager then went on to heap praise on Joan Garcia, who excelled vs Alaves last weekend.

“I coached Neuer and Marc, who are fantastic goalkeepers. Joan has a great future ahead of him. From day one, you can see his potential, and he demonstrates it in matches,” he said.

“He has great quality in goalkeeping and with his feet. He’s very quick. It was the right decision for the club. He gives us a lot for the coming years. He brings great security.”

On being quizzed if the improvement he sought from the team was more on the mental side or tactical, the Barcelona manager elaborated:

“It’s always important to be a leader, but we’ve had a lot of injuries this season. We’ve never used excuses. But we need more minutes with the starting line-up because last season was the ideal example.

“We had Pedri, we had De Jong, we had the defenders, who were always the same… We had that consistency that we’re struggling to have this year. These aren’t excuses and we’re managing it. Now the goal is to win a big game like tomorrow’s.”

Regarding Atletico Madrid, who have been in excellent form in La Liga of late, Flick noted:

“We have to play at our best against a great team. They are one of the best teams in Europe, with great quality, and they have improved with the summer transfer market.

“I like watching them play because they are very good in attack… but we also have quality and our job is to prove it.”

Source: Mundo Deportivo