Hansi Flick talks Alvarez, Cancelo, Rodri, Balde ahead of Elche vs Barcelona | OneFootball

FC Barcelona are set to start their 2026-27 season tomorrow, on Sunday, when they will be facing Elche for their first game of the La Liga campaign. The Blaugrana fans will be eagerly awaiting this match, as Hansi Flick looks to get another league title into the bag, with several new players at his disposal.

As Mundo Deportivo has reported, the German coach addressed the customary press conference ahead of this match, and took this opportunity to comment on several aspects related to the club and the upcoming game.

Flick started the presser by recognizing that all of his players might not be in their best possible shape, but was clear that his team would be looking for the full three points:

“Of course, we have to manage their minutes. It’s normal that the players who played in the World Cup won’t play 90 minutes, although they may have to play some minutes. It’s not easy to manage that. But there are no excuses. It’s the first match, we have to win it and make a good start. It won’t be easy; Elche know how to play with the ball, they move it quickly and control it. The objective is to get the three points.”

The German tactician did not give a clear answer when asked about Julian Alvarez’s signing:

“Deco and I talk every day. I’m not worried that we haven’t signed a number nine yet. I don’t like talking about players from other teams. Everything has to do with the team and the club. Only Deco, myself and a few other people know exactly what we want. Deco is doing a fantastic job.”

The Barcelona coach did not give any clues about his starting lineup for the upcoming game:

Flick praised the young forward Hamza Abdelkarim who has played a prominent role in his team during the preseason:

“Hamza is having a very good pre-season. He’s a number nine, a young player with a lot of potential, and he has scored goals. He has done a fantastic job. And regarding Julián, I already said that I don’t talk about players from other teams.”

Despite the loss of players like Robert Lewandowski, Ferran Torres, and Marcus Rashford, the German trainer believed the quality of the team was better than before:

“I don’t know exactly. We’ve signed top-level players and the quality is higher. There have been a lot of changes, but sometimes it’s also good to change things in the dressing room because that way everyone becomes aware of it. This is a competition and everyone is competing for a place. That makes the players stronger, helps them improve, and makes the team grow. That’s how you win titles.

It’s a privilege to train every day with this level of quality and healthy competition. I told the players that the quality is very good, but tomorrow is when the important part begins. We have to make a good start and win.”

The Barcelona coach ruled out one of the new signings of the summer, Rodri Hernandez, for the match against Elche:

Flick was not too keen to talk about Real Madrid:

The German manager recognized that tomorrow’s match will be a difficult one for his team:

“It’s our first match, while Elche have already started their season. I think everyone has to give their maximum, no less. We’ll need to give 100% of our ability.”

The Barcelona coach did not rule out any more departures from the team:

“When you bring in new players, you think about how to make the team very strong. There may be changes, and we’ll have to wait until the end of the transfer window.”

In contrast to Rodri, Flick confirmed that Cancelo was ready for the game tomorrow:

Meanwhile, the coach also asked for full effort from Alejandro Balde, who might again lose the starting spot to Cancelo:

“It’s a difficult question because he has tremendous quality, and it’s important to know whether a player is convinced that he can compete for his position. That’s what I want to see from all my players. Every day I see what they do, their level, and whether they show me that they are at the level required to play. In the end, we have to play as a team; only then will we achieve success. I need everyone to be 100% fully committed.”

The German coach was again asked about Julian Alvarez but he refused to comment on his situation:

“I don’t want to talk about Julián.”

This was the first press conference of the 2026-27 season from Hansi Flick, and he did not give many indications about his plans for the next season. Thus, it remains to be seen which of his players will get a place in the starting lineup tomorrow as Barcelona face Elche.