Just in – Flick benched Barcelona winger vs Valencia as punishment for being late | OneFootball

FC Barcelona announced the starting lineup for their home game against Valencia minutes ago, with some rotations being made by manager Hansi Flick.

The biggest news was that Roony Bardghji was handed his debut, starting on the right flank in the injury-enforced absence of Lamine Yamal.

Meanwhile, on the left, Flick opted to go with Marcus Rashford, meaning Raphinha was left out on the bench.

Raphinha’s benching a punishment

Now, according to RAC1, Raphinha was supposed to be included in the starting lineup for Barcelona vs Valencia.

However, he was benched by Flick as a punishment for being late to a pre-match activation session.

Benched. (Photo by Paul Miller/Getty Images)

This is not the first time that the Barcelona head coach has penalised players for being late to training/tactical sessions.

Jules Kounde has had to face the brunt of it on multiple occasions, while Inaki Pena was also on the receiving end of such a punishment back in January this year.

Now, it is Raphinha who has been penalised for arriving late to a pre-match session with the Brazilian winger getting benched at Estadi Johan Cruyff.

In a way, it might be a good thing for Barcelona, considering that the former Leeds United forward had endured a rough international break, having to travel to and from South America, while playing in difficult conditions in Bolivia.