FC BARCELONA
Corners that Make a Difference: The Master Tactic of Barça under Hansi Flick
Published:26/02/2025 - 05:28h
Updated:26/02/2025 - 05:28h
FC Barcelona found a solution in corners against Atlético de Madrid. Two of the four goals from the Catalans came this way, with Pau Cubarsí and Iñigo Martínez as the protagonists.
Hansi Flick's FC Barcelona has been wonderfully working on set pieces. In the first semifinal of the Cup against Atlético de Madrid (4-4), the azulgrana team managed to score twice through corners delivered by Raphinha, against a team that had only conceded one goal throughout the tournament and is usually very effective in aerial play, both in attack and, especially, in defense.
In the 21st minute, Barça managed to equalize the match (2-2) thanks to a good header from Pau Cubarsí. The academy player made his debut as a scorer for the club thanks to a great cross from Rafa and the good work of Iñigo Martínez dragging defenders. The 18-year-old defender appeared completely alone at the far post, after coming in from the edge of the area, taking advantage of the screen set by the Basque.
20 minutes later, the Catalans replicated the play, this time with Iñigo as the finisher and Cubarsí doing the 'dirty work' to free up space. Atlético claimed a foul on the '2' from Barça, but Marcos Llorente lost his mark easily. From a set piece, Barça found a way to turn around a match that started in the worst way, with the 'colchoneros' striking twice in the first 6 minutes.
Aerial Play, a Trump Card for Flick's Barça
Indeed, against Atlético, Barça reached 120 goals for the season. 16 of them have come from aerial play (6 in Champions, 4 in La Liga, 4 in the Cup, and 1 in the Super Cup). The team has managed to take advantage not only of the physicality of its players to dominate in the air but also of the 'glove' that players like Raphinha, Lamine Yamal, Pedri, and Dani Olmo have for delivering perfect crosses into the area.
Pau Cubarsí, Fermín López, Gavi, and Marc Casadó have also demonstrated their ability to serve authentic 'gems' directly to the head of a teammate, an avenue that has helped resolve very complicated matches (like in Lisbon against Benfica, through Eric García). Undoubtedly, Hansi Flick has maximized the use of aerial play and set pieces in a Barça that is on track to break all its offensive records in the 2024/25 season.
