Barcelona won the Catalan derby against its neighbor Espanyol, winning three goals to one, in the match that brought the two teams together on Sunday evening, in the 12th round of the Spanish League.
In light of the result, Barcelona is 9 points ahead in the La Liga table, benefiting from the postponement of the Real Madrid and Valencia match, with its score reaching 33 points, while the loser’s score stopped at 10 points in 17th place.
According to information received from the Spanish newspaper “El Nacional,” the German coach expressed his great happiness after the victory over Espanyol and moving away at the top of the league by a large margin over rival Real Madrid.
The newspaper added that Flick is also happy with the level of young midfielder Marc Casado, who is proving his great importance to Barcelona match after match this season.
Flick told the player that he cannot find suitable words to describe the magnificence and quality of what he is presenting on the field with the Catalan team.
The newspaper indicated that the German coach surprised the star of the match, the Spanish player Dani Olmo, after the match, and told him: “At this level, you will not sit as a substitute for any other player.”
Despite the Spanish player’s return from injury, he does not leave a match without scoring or making an assist, and Flick cannot dispense with the player as long as he is free from injuries.
The newspaper added that Flick, despite the victory, is very angry with Barcelona star Alejandro Balde, as the player presented a poor defensive and offensive performance and asked him to focus and develop his level so as not to ruin Barcelona’s season.
In an unexpected development, Laporta went down to the team’s locker room immediately after the end of the match, and talked to Flick, asking him to give Barcelona star Ansu Fati a chance and more minutes to participate in the matches.
Laporta still trusts the number 10 and wants Flick to give him time to regain his level, as he may be a new asset for Barcelona if he returns to his former glory.
The newspaper concluded that Laporta went to Barcelona star Dani Olmo and congratulated him on the great level he is presenting, asking him to do more in the upcoming matches to lead Barcelona back to the podiums again.