Three key talking points as Barcelona crush Athletic Club 5-0 in Spanish Super Cup | OneFootball

FC Barcelona faced Athletic Club in a crucial Spanish Super Cup semi-final in Jeddah, and the Catalan giants were at their devastating best. They thrashed the Basque side 5–0 to secure a place in this weekend’s final.

It has been a while since Hansi Flick’s team has been as clinical as they were last night. The free-flowing football returned, despite the absence of Lamine Yamal from the starting line-up, and the goals kept coming from all directions.

Each of Barcelona’s first four goals was scored by a different player, highlighting how they shared the spoils among themselves, and fringe players like Roony Bardghji put their hands up in style and lapped up the opportunity.

With all this in mind, here are three talking points as Barcelona convincingly beat Athletic Club 5-0 in Jeddah.

1: Raphinha — The world’s best left winger

It almost feels inconceivable to think that Raphinha, the world’s best left winger in the past couple of seasons, has been deployed in a more restricted central role for the past few games to accommodate Marcus Rashford.

Thus, it came as quite a relief when Flick named Fermin in the starting XI and put Raphinha where he thrives, and the results were there for everyone to see. The Brazilian had a ridiculous game against Athletic Club, causing all kinds of chaos.

He first got an assist to his name after an inch-perfect cut-back to Fermin Lopez, then went on to score two goals of his own, one of which was an absolute thunderbolt, with minimal backlift, that beat Unai Simon at his near post.

If ever there was a game that highlighted why Hansi Flick should use Raphinha only on the left, it was this one. Let us hope the German does not change things and continues to use the Brazilian as a winger.

2: The return of the Pedri x Frenkie pivot

One major question ahead of the Athletic Club game was whether Hansi Flick would reunite Frenkie and Pedri at the base of midfield, or persist with Eric Garcia in that position to accommodate Gerard Martin in central defence.

The German manager made the decision to reunite the much-acclaimed midfield duo, and they put in a masterclass. Both Pedri and Frenkie were at the top of their game last night, controlling the midfield with aplomb.

Pedri was at his nifty best, twisting in and out of tight spaces, seeing passes no one can envision, and keeping the game flowing. Frenkie, on the other hand, was inch-perfect with his switches, his metronomic positioning, and his defensive work whenever required.

Meanwhile, Eric Garcia had a very good game at centre-back too. With the trio justifying Flick’s decision fully, it will come as no surprise to see all three of them in the starting XI for the final this weekend.

3: Roony Bardghji — What a signing for Barcelona!

Barcelona do not have a great record of getting developmental signings to succeed, with the likes of Vitor Roque headlining the failed list. The only exception to that rule for many years was the decision to bring Pedri from Las Palmas.

However, it looks like Deco’s decision to spend €2.5 million over the summer to bring Roony Bardghji to the club will go down as an equally important call. The Swede had an outstanding game against Athletic Club.

Lamine being rested meant that a spot opened up on the right wing, and credit to Flick for choosing to go with Roony rather than switch Raphinha over to the right and start Rashford on the left. The young winger registered one goal and two assists.

What surprised everyone beyond his output was his decision-making, which is way beyond his years. For a winger, Roony almost always knows when to shoot, when to dribble, and when to pass, and Barcelona have a special player on their hands whom they should start giving more minutes to.