Flick warns Barça players to learn from Copa del Rey defeat ahead of Newcastle knockout tie | OneFootball

Hansi Flick has urged his players to learn from their two-legged Copa del Rey defeat to Atlético Madrid ahead of their UEFA Champions League round-of-16 first leg against Newcastle United.

Barça have already ventured to Tyneside once this season, claiming a narrow victory over Eddie Howe’s men in the league phase thanks to a Marcus Rashford brace.

But the Englishman isn’t guaranteed to start on Tuesday, Flick revealed in his pre-match press conference, admitting: “I have not decided yet, but he’s a good option.”

Having suffered back-to-back defeats against Atlético Madrid and then Girona in mid-February, Barcelona are currently on a four-game winning run – including an impressive 3-0 victory over Atléti in the second leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final, although it was not enough to overturn the first-leg deficit.

Flick stressed the importance of learning from that tie, insisting that “we have two games and in the end, every game counts.

“We know also from the two matches against Atlético how important the first match is,” he explained, adding that the first leg “was not a great performance from the whole team” but insisting that “when you see the [second leg] game at home against Atlético, it was totally different.”

He emphasised the significance of applying pressure immediately after losing possession, pointing out that “when you give them time, it’s not easy to defend. If you stay in a low block, a mid block, or if you press high, it’s always the same. When you are not pressuring on the ball, it’s very difficult to defend.”

Flick expects Newcastle United to “play a very intense game, so they will press us man-to-man [and] when they get the ball, transition very quickly because they have fast players in offence.”

“We have to continue our way, our style and how we want to play. This is our philosophy, we want to play like Barça also here in the Champions League because our supporters our proud of the way we play football and that’s what we want to show tomorrow,” he added.

While some hospitality tickets remain on sale for Tuesday’s clash at St James’ Park remain, general admission tickets have sold out and Flick accepted that “tomorrow we’ll find in this stadium a fantastic atmosphere.”

Newcastle United v Barcelona kicks off at 20:00 UK on Tuesday 10 March.