Hansi Flick was presented to the media for the first time as Barcelona manager on Thursday. During the press conference, the former Bayern Munich and Germany coach was grilled on a wide variety of topics, which included the individual cases of many of his first team players.
One player Flick did not discuss was Sergi Roberto. Ace for MDensured that the press knew that the former captain of the club is not currently managed by him, after the expiration of his contract at the end of June.
“He is not a Barcelona player at the moment.”
Flick spoke about Frenkie de Jong, who currently suffers from a worrying ankle injury. Despite reports that the Dutch midfielder is a candidate to be sold this summer, Flick has assured that he will be a key player for Barcelona during the coming season.
“Frenkie is a fantastic player, he has shown it, he is recovering well and following the plan, I hope to have him in the group and then we will see.”
Ronald Araujo was also talked about by Flick. He expressed his disappointment at being without the Uruguayan defender for the next four months.
“Whenever a player of this quality gets injured, it's not good for the coach or the club, but you have to accept it. He's had an operation and now he'll start his recovery. I hope he'll be back as soon as possible. He brings stability to the defense that we need, but we'll see how it goes without him.”
Finally, Flick touched Gavi, by whom he was very impressed during the first weeks of of Barcelona pre-season training program.
“Gavi is always on fire when he is on the pitch. He wants to come back soon but he has to be patient. We will give him the time he needs and hopefully he can spend 14 or 15 years playing in this team. He has already shown everything he can give to this club.”
