Barcelona were held to a dramatic 4-4 draw by their guests, Atletico Madrid, in the Spanish King’s Cup, in the first leg of the semi-final on Tuesday evening at the Olympic Stadium of Luis Companys.
Thus, the final qualifier will be decided in the second leg between the two teams at the Metropolitano next April, with the match being open to all possibilities. The Rojiblancos have a relative advantage due to playing the match in front of their fans.
According to information received from the Spanish newspaper “El Nacional”, German coach Hansi Flick is unprecedentedly angry about the disastrous draw against Atletico tonight.
The newspaper indicated that the German coach held Barcelona’s trio responsible for the team’s failure to win, led by Spanish striker Ferran Torres, who missed two clear goals in the first half in front of an empty net.
The other player reprimanded by Flick is French defender Kounde, who played a disastrous match and failed to cover Atletico’s counterattacks. He contributed to the Madrid team’s comeback as a result of his repeated mistakes.
The newspaper added that the third player Flick turned on was Gavi, who, as soon as he came on as a substitute, saw Barcelona lose control of the midfield. Marcos Llorente was able to score the third goal for Atletico without any noticeable coverage from Gavi.
Accordingly, Flick made a fiery decision to exclude Spanish player Ferran Torres from Barcelona’s starting lineup for the remainder of the season following his disastrous performance against Atletico tonight.
The newspaper added that Flick apologized to Barcelona duo Pedri and Raphinha for substituting them late in the second half, admitting that this decision was the worst for him in the match and helped Atletico Madrid come back and turn the tables on Barcelona.
In an unexpected development, Laporta headed to the Catalan team’s locker room in a state of hysterical anger over the disappointing result and held Flick responsible for the shocking draw due to his failed decisions in the substitutions. Laporta is upset with Gavi’s performance, who, as soon as he came on, allowed Atletico back into the game. He has asked Flick to bring Casado back into the starting lineup at the expense of Pablo Gavi.