Hansi Flick explained how “tired” his Barcelona team are as a reason for losing a huge Champions League test against cup holders Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday night.
Up against the reigning European champions, it was a good opportunity for Barça to show their credentials to win the competition this season. But after Ferran Torres scored first in Montjuïc, PSG tied the game through Senny Mayulu in the 38th minute and then won it with a Gonçalo Ramos goal at the death.
“We played much better in the first half than in the second,” Flick assessed. “We conceded too much [possession] because we were tired. The truth is that PSG is a great team; they have very young and fast players, and they played a fantastic game.”
Once 19-year-old Mayulu equalized, Flick thought PSG had the upper hand.
“After 35 minutes, PSG had a better control of the match. I don’t think we played at our best. But that’s also important in the Champions League. They deserved to win,” the coach conceded.
The reason for that drop from Barça, who reached last season’s Champions League semifinals and are targeting in 2025–26 a first European title in more than a decade, was fatigue.
“I think you could see in the second half that some players were very tired. Pedri, Frenkie [de Jong]... but everyone gave their all on the pitch. With the score at 1–1, you have to have a better defensive structure. We have to learn and improve,” Flick added.
“When you’re a little tired, it shows on the field. I don’t think we can say we’re at the same level [as PSG], but I believe in my team, and we didn’t show our best.”
Luis Enrique: Barcelona are Champions League Contenders
Luis Enrique was the last coach to win the Champions League for Barcelona, coming in 2015 at the peak of the ‘MSN’ era with Lionel Messi, Luis Suárez and Neymar at the tip of a sharpened attack.
The Catalans haven’t reached the final since then, but having taken three points back to Paris, Enrique was still complimentary about his former team.
“They’re among the contenders to win the Champions League,” he insisted.
“They’re playing fantastically, at a very high level, and this is just the beginning. There are few teams with such a clear identity. Barça and we are contenders to compete for the title. But the knockout stages will reveal how each team fares.”
The Spaniard called the match itself “excellent,” highlighting the technical quality on display.
“When you see two teams play that don’t kick [each other], that play and try to play and hurt each other with the ball... it’s a very complete match,” he said.
“They were superior until they scored the goal. We recovered, Nuno [Mendes] made an incredible play [to assist the equalizer]. I think we were better in the second half.”
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as ‘We Have to Learn’—Hansi Flick Explains Reason for Barcelona Loss in Big PSG Test.
