Hansi Flick appeared before the media in the press room at the Joan Gamper Sports City for the press conference ahead of the FC Barcelona and Real Madrid showdown, in the first Clásico of the 2024-25 season, corresponding to matchday 11 of LaLiga EA Sports. This match, beyond the usual emotional and sporting intensity in encounters between two of the world's best clubs, is crucial for both teams' aspirations to lead the local competition.
A victory for Barcelona in this clash could widen the lead to six points over Real Madrid, solidifying their position at the top of the standings. On the other hand, if the Merengues emerge victorious, they could draw level on points with the Blaugrana and also position themselves as leaders of LaLiga EA Sports.
The German coach wanted to start the press conference by highlighting the feelings leading up to this important encounter, emphasizing the calmness he and the team feel ahead of facing Real Madrid. "To be honest, I'm not thinking much today. My job is to prepare the team well. I see that all the players are eagerly awaiting this match. I am looking forward to it too. It will be a very good game," expressed the German coach.
Hansi Flick's Keys to Successfully Navigate the Match against Real Madrid
Furthermore, Hansi Flick made it clear that he does not plan to make drastic changes to his playing system to face Real Madrid, although he will make adjustments to counter what he sees as the opponent's main offensive strategy. "We have our system, I said it against Bayern. I said we needed to improve some things. Every game we play, we adapt to the opponent, and that's what we'll do against Real Madrid. All teams have fast players. I have full confidence in my team; they have been doing really well. We believe in ourselves," commented the Heidelberg native.
Regarding Barcelona's style of play, Hansi Flick was asked about the team's notable ability to catch their opponents offside, to which the coach did not hesitate to explain the reason behind the effectiveness of this tactic. "We have many coaches studying this. This is our philosophy; we want to press high, press the ball, the ball possessor. We need to stay close, play compact. When there's too much space between the lines, it doesn't work well for us," added the Culé boss.
"Training it (the offside tactic) is not easy, but we focus a lot on it. We have a lot of quality with and without the ball, and we want to see it."
In addition, Hansi Flick emphasized that the team is focused on their goals, not letting external pressure or accolades affect them, maintaining true group cohesion. "It's good to receive praise. I do my job, and it's about the results. When you win, it's good, and when you don't, it's less so. We need to focus on our idea, on our passion," warned the German.
"It's a big change with the atmosphere here in our stadium. We saw it Wednesday night. That's why we play football. That's why we give our all, also for the Clásico. When you play football, what you want is to play these matches."
Criticisms of Real Madrid TV for their video against referee Sánchez Martínez
On another note, Hansi Flick also addressed the controversy surrounding the videos from Real Madrid TV that criticized the work of referee José María Sánchez Martínez, who will officiate the match between the Blaugrana and the Merengues. The Barcelona coach vehemently rejected these accusations, emphasizing the team's focus on the game above any external distractions. "We won't do this. I think referees have a tough job, and this is not my job. I've had good experiences with referees in LaLiga, I have no complaints. I've told the players to focus on the game and not on the referees. We can't change these things. If something unclear is pointed out, it can be reviewed," he concluded.
To wrap up and conclude the topic of refereeing, Hansi Flick asserted that he doesn't expect any surprises regarding the referee's performance, making it clear that in previous encounters with Real Madrid, there haven't been major issues. "I've already answered this. I've been to the Bernabéu before. We played there with Bayern a long time ago. And there were no problems," he concluded.