Flick urges Barcelona to learn from last year´s Champions League failure - Soccer News

[ad_1] Hansi Flick urged his Barcelona gamers to study their classes from final 12 months’s failure within the Champions League forward of the beginning of their 2025-26 marketing campaign on Thursday.

Barcelona journey to St. James’ Park to face Newcastle United in what would be the fifth assembly between the 2 sides, and the primary since March 2003.

However the Blaugrana are out to finish their over-decade-long await Champions League glory this season, having fallen in need of a spot within the remaining of final 12 months’s competitors.

Flick watched on as his crew had been crushed 7-6 on mixture by Inter within the semi-finals in 2024-25, with the Serie A giants happening to lose 5-0 within the showpiece match to Paris Saint-Germain.

Barcelona are handed an 8% probability of profitable the competitors this season, with solely Manchester Metropolis (9%), PSG (11%), Arsenal (18%) and Liverpool (20%) rated greater for lifting the title by the Opta supercomputer, although Flick mentioned his crew should reply to final season’s shortcomings.

“From my expertise, you at all times have to offer your finest in each sport. I feel we now have to study from every assembly, from what occurred to us final 12 months,” Flick instructed reporters.

“I need to repeat how we performed on Sunday. Everybody was related, centered. Lamine, Balde, Gavi weren't there.

“However we did properly in opposition to Valencia and that’s what I need to see tomorrow as properly, a very good sport.”

Barcelona have gained 12 of their final 16 Champions League video games in opposition to English opposition (drawing two and shedding two), scoring 2.1 objectives per sport on common throughout that run.

Nevertheless, their final away Champions League sport on English soil noticed them lose 4-0 to Liverpool, and have solely misplaced consecutive such matches on one event beforehand (in opposition to Arsenal in 2011 and Chelsea in 2012).

And Flick was not underestimating Eddie Howe’s crew, who come into the sport having secured their first win of their Premier League season in opposition to Wolves final weekend.

“I’ve by no means been to this stadium earlier than. It’s probably the greatest atmospheres. I count on depth, dynamism. They're an opponent who's attentive to the second play,” Flick added.

“He’s [Howe] grown in recent times and his coach has completed a incredible job.

“I feel the sport we performed in opposition to Valencia was superb, I noticed that we did what we need to do. Everybody desires the ball. There may be belief.

“It won't be a simple crossing. They're robust. There are robust groups within the Champions League, however we're assured.”

Of managers with 10+ video games in control of a crew within the Champions League, the 2 sides with the very best objectives per sport common are each Flick groups – 3.2 with Bayern Munich (2019-2021) and three.1 with Barcelona.

And key to that attacking output has been Lamine Yamal, who netted 5 instances in addition to offering three assists in final 12 months’s run to the ultimate 4.

The 18-year-old additionally accomplished extra dribbles (56) than some other participant within the competitors in 2024-25, 17 greater than AC Milan’s Rafael Leao, who was second in that metric.

Nevertheless, Yamal is absent for the journey to Newcastle after selecting up a hamstring harm on worldwide responsibility with Spain, providing the possibility for Marcus Rashford to shine.

Rashford has made 4 appearances since his mortgage swap from Manchester United, solely two of which had been begins, registering his solely help thus far in Barcelona’s 6-0 rout in opposition to Valencia on the weekend.

However the England worldwide has a loved taking part in in opposition to the Magpies. He has been instantly concerned in eight objectives in 11 profession begins in opposition to Newcastle (5 objectives, three assists), together with 4 in six begins at St. James’ Park in opposition to them (two objectives, two assists).

“I need to discuss concerning the gamers who can play. Tomorrow he can’t play and we’ll see on Sunday. We've got a very good squad and there are folks for the place,” Flick mentioned.

“Rashford is within the crew. If somebody can’t play, he can are available. I hope he can present in England what he did on Sunday.

“I’ve adopted Marcus since Man United. He has velocity, one-on-one and definition. What I’ve seen within the first few weeks has been good and has a little bit extra potential to point out.