Much of the talk about what Barcelona manager Hansi Flick has changed since he arrived at the club has focused on their style of football and the improvement of some of their players. Yet the atmosphere in the dressing room is another aspect that appears to have improved, as evidenced by an anecdote told by Flick on Sunday evening after their 7-1 demolition of Valencia.
With Barcelona in Cruise Control and the game driving towards a conclusion, Flick sent on Gavi to come on and replace Frenkie de Jong for the final 15 minutes. The German coach was seen on the touchline giving the 20-year-old a hug, which many assumed meant he was coming on. A few minutes later, however, it was Pablo Torre who replaced the Dutchman. Flick explained the incident after the match.
“The situation that impressed me the most was when I was talking to Gavi, who I wanted to put on for the last 15 minutes, and he said, 'No, put on Pablo Torre.' And this is incredible, it's amazing. You can see how the players are connected to each other. It's fantastic and for a coach it's incredible. I love Gavi for his attitude and talking like that at that moment is fantastic,” said he the media.
Gavi has only recently returned to regular action following the injury that kept him out for just under a year, and has begun to make his presence felt in the starting XI at the expense of Dani Olmo, who has also missed several matches through injury and suspension .
However, his altruistic gesture gave Torre a chance to make an impact. The former Racing Santander midfielder has been starved of minutes this season since Gavi and De Jong returned to Fitness, despite performing well when he has been on the pitch. The 21-year-old has 4 goals and 3 assists in just 373 minutes in 12 appearances.
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