Barcelona win La Liga: How Hansi Flick’s side dominated Real
Under Flick’s management, Raphinha became a more consistent and effective attacking player despite an injury-disrupted season.
Flick has increased the Brazilian’s attacking responsibility and improved his role, encouraging quicker decision-making in transition and a more direct style of play that suits his strengths.
Pedri remained a central figure in midfield and thrived in a system built on rapid progression.
Robert Lewandowski, meanwhile, rediscovered his sharpness in Flick’s system. With better serve and more structured attacking patterns, the 37-year-old experienced Polish forward looks determined once again. His future at the club is not yet known as his contract expires in June.
Eric Garcia has emerged as one of the most valuable tactical players of the season, filling multiple positions seamlessly, while Gerard Martin has exceeded expectations after being brought into a key defensive role.
Despite the defeat, Barcelona responded consistently. After defeats against Girona and Real Madrid in October, they immediately started long winning streaks in the league rather than letting the failures spiral.
Flick also showed a strong desire to replace and rely on squad players, which helped Barcelona maintain their intensity and consistency throughout a difficult season. Marcus Rashford is one of these players.
Although he is not a guaranteed starter, Flick has regularly used him off the bench at crucial moments and statistics show that he is among the best forwards at the top three Spanish clubs (Barca, Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid) if you measure goals and assists per minute in La Liga this season.
Rashford scored the most important goal of his Barcelona career on Sunday; It was a spectacular free kick that opened the scoring in El Clasico.
It was an opportune moment for the 28-year-old, who could sign with the Catalan club on a permanent basis for €35m (£30m); However, it remains to be seen whether they will turn Rashford’s loan into a permanent transfer.
Flick was also praised for the care he took with his players.
The manager gave Ronald Araujo leave in December to prioritize his mental health, describing it as a special case. Flick did not share further details about the situation and asked the media to respect the defender’s privacy.
