Flick talks Garcia, Szczesny, Lamine, Busquets, Madrid derby ahead of Barcelona vs Real Sociedad | OneFootball

Only three days after defeating Real Oviedo 3-1, FC Barcelona are back in action in La Liga, as they take on Real Sociedad on Sunday.

The Blaugrana will host the Basque club at Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys in Montjuic, with the Spotify Camp Nou still not ready for reopening.

With Real Madrid taking on Atletico Madrid later today, Barcelona might have an excellent shot at closing down the gap at the top if Xabi Alonso & co. end up dropping points at the Riyadh Air Metropolitano.

Ahead of the game against La Real, manager Hansi Flick spoke to the media at his pre-match press conference, where he discussed the injury to Joan Garcia, among other things.

Kicking things off, though, the Barcelona manager touched upon their opponents, Real Sociedad, and the challenge that awaits his team, saying:

“Real Sociedad have a clear style of play. They want to build from the back and they have a great striker up front. They are strong and fast. But we also have good players. This is an opportunity to show our strength.”

The chat then quickly moved to Garcia’s injury, with Flick lamenting the goalkeeper’s absence but backing Wojciech Szczesny to step up in his absence.

“It’s not nice to have Joan Garcia out, he was doing well. He got injured in the last game against Oviedo, but these things happen,” said Flick.

“Now, Tek is back, and if you look at the second half of last season, we won almost every game with Szczesny, he was there, and we won three titles with him. He’s a great goalkeeper, a great person, and I have no doubts about him.”

Regarding the Madrid derby set to kick off in a few hours, Flick said: “It’s at 4.15 pm, isn’t it? I think I’ll watch it, as usual. I watch a lot of matches, and it’ll be a good afternoon to watch the game. They’re two great teams. I’ll watch it.”

The Barcelona manager confirmed Lamine Yamal’s return to the squad for tomorrow’s match, saying:

“I don’t have that feeling [regarding relapse]. You never know what might happen. But we are certain that it’s time for him to return. We are happy that he will be available for tomorrow.”

Lamine is back. (Photo by Alex Caparros/Getty Images)

On the 18-year-old winger and his potential call-up to the Spanish national team now that he is fully fit, Flick said:

“He will be available tomorrow, but it’s not my job to decide whether Lamine gets called up by the manager. That’s up to him. It’s his decision.”

Flick also spoke highly of Toni Fernandez, who has been a regular in the matchday squad for the first team, but has not played much.

“I think it’s good that he trains and plays with the best. Every week, he learns and improves from a great team. Toni is an option to play. He didn’t play in the last few games, but he’s available, he’s a good option,” he said.

With the Montjuic Stadium ready to host the games, the manager was asked about the state of the pitch, which was relaid earlier this week.

“I hope so. They’ve laid it very quickly, they’ve done a good job. I’m not worried,” the Barça head coach noted.

When asked about Sergio Busquets, who announced his retirement this week, Flick said: “We all enjoyed that Barça and that midfield. I enjoyed it a lot.”

Regarding the injuries that have rocked the squad since the start of the season, the manager noted:

“It’s part of my job, but I love it. It’s always a challenge. We have a great team, despite the injuries. We focus on what is in our hands, which is what we must influence.”

On whether the upcoming game against PSG on 1 October was playing on his and the team’s mind heading into tomorrow’s contest, Flick was clear:

“We are always focused on the next match, and that is tomorrow against Real Sociedad. Then we will see how we want to play and prepare for PSG.

“At the moment, we have four wins in a row and we have to keep it up and show our fans tomorrow the same spirit we had last season. It doesn’t matter how many players we have injured, only those who can play will surely do a great job.”

Source: Mundo Deportivo