Flick plans heavy rotation against Sevilla with an eye on Newcastle United clash – report | OneFootball

Coming on the back of a disappointing result against Newcastle United, Barcelona will be looking to get back to winning ways as they take on Sevilla this weekend.

It is a must-win league game for the Catalans, who have a four-point lead over Real Madrid at the top of the table. History has shown that four-point leads can be quite fragile, even after just one bad result.

However, that won’t stop Hansi Flick from making some wholesale changes to the Barcelona team heading into this game.

Flick to ring in the changes?

According to SPORT, Flick is expected to rest several of the ‘theoretical’ starters for Barcelona against Sevilla this weekend.

It appears the German is prioritising Barcelona’s second-leg Round of 16 encounter against Newcastle United. After drawing in the first leg, the Catalans must secure a victory at Camp Nou in order to advance to the quarterfinals.

Flick has acknowledged that the Barcelona team is tired. (Photo by George Wood/Getty Images)

However, Flick is also aware of the fact that the Barcelona team is exhausted due to the congested fixture list.

It was seen right after the game against Atletico Madrid in the Copa del Rey, when both Jules Kounde and Alejandro Balde picked up injuries.

Even against Newcastle United, Ronald Araujo and Marc Bernal were completely out of energy, whereas Eric Garcia wasn’t even included in the starting XI due to an overload.

Flick, therefore, will ring in the changes against Sevilla, giving opportunities to relatively lesser-used players in the first team.

This could see the likes of Roony Bardghji, Marcus Rashford and Dani Olmo potentially play a crucial role as Barcelona take on Sevilla this weekend. Meanwhile, starters like Pedri, Marc Bernal, and Raphinha could be given a breather.