It's easy to miss the details on nights when headlines are scrawled in capital letters across the images, where disaster stands in direct contrast to delirium. The latter was in abundance for those in the Blaugrana after their Super Cup upset against Real Madrid. After throwing them out of the salon door onto the street for all to see, with the gull-wing doors flapping, as Los Blancos tried to pick themselves up and get back to Barcelona, spurred on by having drawn red from a Wojciech Szczesny-shaped wound, they discovered that they didn't. Barcelona stretched out a long arm on Real Madrid's forehead, and Los Blancos discovered that Barcelona was beyond their reach. It would have been less embarrassing if both sides had scored again, wrongly portraying the match as a free contest.
For all his lack of self-control, you almost have to applaud Barcelona president Joan Laporta for not flashing the grin he had when he held the trophy in his hands as he sat next to Real Madrid colleague Florentino Perez in the opulent Director's Box. Although Laporta made sure to get a photo in the middle of the players, celebrating as one of them, you may have missed that Hansi Flick was absent from the Barcelona photo, complete with the rest of the staff and the team. You would hardly be surprised if he had offered to take it.
In itself it is a mistake. Overall, it could be seen as another lame attempt by the Catalan press to sing Flick's praises and whisper about the club's shortcomings. In the context of a consistent image being built in front of the press, outside the gates of the training ground and behind closed doors, it is another thing that the German coach has been right since his arrival in Barcelona.
Another manager might have inflated his own shares in light of this victory, their thrashing of Bayern Munich, their dissection of Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu, or their knockout in Dortmund that left BVB in its first place in three years suffered a home defeat in Europe. However, Flick sticks to a side story, losing everything that isn't useful in translation, and communicating all the important stuff to its players, away from prying eyes.
That was evident in Jeddah, as Barcelona tore Real Madrid apart and dashed the hopes of their stars, with the exception of Kylian Mbappé, to the Frenchman's credit, a bill he will have to fill in the Spanish capital. After infuriating the Bernabeu and their biggest rivals with their offside trap in his first meeting with Real Madrid, Flick dropped his defense ten yards deeper this time and dragged their defenders outside before Raphinha and Lamine Yamal cut inside. The way Eduardo Camavinga and Vinicius Junior were able to gain some traction over their opponents was with their studs.
In the age of celebrity managers, there is something to be said for avoiding their deification and demonization with every outcome – a point that Carlo Ancelotti has had to emphasize several times this season. You could argue that Barcelona are behind expectations, sitting third in La Liga, five points behind Real Madrid and six points clear of Atletico Madrid. S*** November colored Barcelona's December, and their Liga form is a real concern, and possibly their demise in the title race.
Yet it's rare that we get such a direct contrast as between Barcelona this season and last season; when something goes wrong in football, people get pulled in. At Montjuic, only Dani Olmo replaced Ilkay Gundogan in the starting team, and the gap between the two does not account for the distance between the two teams on the field, which are separated by seven months. Pedri and Fede Valverde both pointed out before the Super Cup final that the title itself was of less importance, but the emotion of a Clasico and the momentum of a trophy lift had a tangible impact. Even if Flick missed the Midas feeling in moments of domestic competition, the sensations stay with you.
His noise-cancelling serenity ranks high on his list of achievements, but the determination Barcelona have shown in big games this season has not been seen since long before Lionel Messi left. In each of their heavyweight battles this season, Barcelona have faced challenges that would have diminished their youthful team in the past. There were flickers under Xavi Hernandez, including big wins over Real Madrid, but none that saw Barcelona nipping at their heels and returning to the front foot with the same talent. Lamine Yamal gliding past players without actually looking like he's sprinting can be the perfect representation of their gait.
“The players now feel like we are a big team,” Flick noted after their 5-2 victory, a nugget that requires panning in the river. Barcelona had conceded after just five minutes, having seen Thibaut Courtois make two brilliant saves from chances already steeped in regret. Against Los Blancos at the Bernabeu, Real Madrid threatened their offside line within an inch of his mind, the word suicidal describing it every few seconds on commentary in hundreds of languages. In Dortmund, Barcelona twice gave up a lead, both times carelessly. When Bayern Munich came to Barcelona, Flick's side sat on the edge of their penalty area for 20 minutes, conceding as Montjuic groaned under the pressure.
None of these melting pots faced a team that had no identity, intent or ideas. All three combine for a Barcelona with personality. One big enough not to be shocked by the presence of weapons similar to theirs. Even on the biggest stages, where adversities keep a close eye on them, Barcelona move comfortably in their own skin, with charisma. Obviously the results are the headlines, but that's perhaps the most impressive part. Flick may not be much of a talker, but his team is leading a Kennedy-esque campaign for his management.
Comments