Barça needs fresh air in defense: Flick must activate rotations

Despite playing a practically perfect first 45 minutes, the duo formed by Pau Cubarsí and Iñigo Martínez showed signs of physical and mental fatigue from a frantic week as the match against Atlético de Madrid progressed. With FC Barcelona focused on attack, the center-backs had to multiply their efforts, and the goal by Sorloth exposed their exhaustion.

Up until the match against Leganés last weekend, the youth player had played 16 consecutive matches as a starter, being substituted in only three of them (Getafe, Young Boys, and Red Star). A brutal demand for a player who, at 17 years old, is in a crucial stage of development.

Iñigo, untouchable for Hansi Flick

Meanwhile, the Basque player has not left the starting eleven since his rest in Osasuna, accumulating 16 consecutive matches as a starter, in which he was only replaced twice (Alavés and Young Boys). Injuries have played an important role in this situation, as both Ronald Araújo and Andreas Christensen and Eric García have been sidelined for a good part of the first half of the season due to their respective physical issues.

However, once the Uruguayan and the Catalan have fully recovered from their setbacks, Flick will be forced to activate rotations in the center of defense once the team resumes activities next January to manage efforts and avoid more visits to the infirmary.

The return of the Uruguayan, in particular, is extremely crucial for the German coach, who has made it clear on several occasions that the center-back is set to play a key role in his project. Although the duo Cubarsí-Iñigo has proven to be more than solid in this first part of the season, the reality is that the demands of the calendar necessitate the players' rest for the greater good.