Hansi Flick reveals the keys to FC Barcelona's draw against Atlético de Madrid

FC Barcelona and Atlético de Madrid starred in an electrifying match in the first leg of the Copa del Rey semifinals. Culés and colchoneros signed a 4-4 draw that leaves the tie more open than ever, and although the azulgrana team played a great match, Hansi Flick could not hide his frustration when evaluating the match in his brief appearance before the media.

"After what has happened, what I can say is that I am disappointed with the result. We played great football and created many chances after conceding two goals early on. But in the end, we conceded too many chances; they are very good in attack, and you can't give them so many opportunities. At halftime, I had already warned that we couldn't give them so much," the coach began.

"It is not easy to explain the match now. We are disappointed, but the game was beautiful. I focus more on this to maintain the players' confidence. What happened cannot be; it seemed too easy, but we were facing a wonderful team. They have a lot of power, and it is not easy to defend against them. We have seen that it only takes giving them the opportunity for them to take advantage of it," he added.

The return leg in Madrid and Pedri's match

Regarding the return leg, which will be played at the Riyadh Air Metropolitano, Flick assured that "I hope we play like those 75 or 80 minutes where we dominated, I hope for this. I hope we win; we have to talk about the goals this week, but we have a very young team that has improved a lot this season. After the break, everything will be possible. We can win."

On the differences between the semifinal match and the one played on matchday 18 of LaLiga, the azulgrana coach stated that "it is a cup match, and all teams love it. Today it shows that all teams try to find solutions in defense and change their strategies. They are a fantastic team."

"We defended very well for 70 minutes, and in the last 5, we failed. The last goal seemed incredible to me; we will have to talk and learn. The most important thing is how we guarantee possession, something that the fans like. The team has confidence, and for me, that is very important," emphasized the German coach.

Finally, Flick referred to the spectacular recital given by Pedri, author of the first goal for Barça, praising the one who night after night confirms that he is the best midfielder in the world. "It cannot be described. He enjoys playing football, and you can see it in training and on the field. Yes, you see that he enjoys playing football. His performances are incredible," he concluded.