Injury time was about to hit at the Benito Villamarin stadium. Barcelona were 2-1 up against the hosts Real Betis and Hansi Flick began his walk from the top of the stand to the dressing room.
Flick watched the game from up there after being sent off in the 66th minute. He had protested after a VAR check suggested a video review of Frenkie de Jong’s contact with Vitor Roque in the box. The referee decided it was a penalty and Giovani Lo Celso equalised for Betis. Referee Muniz Ruiz sent Flick to the stands.
“I am disappointed by the sending-off,” said Flick to the media after the match. “I did not say anything to anyone, it (what I did on the touchline) was just a reaction to myself. I thought it took a very long time for VAR to decide if that was a penalty.”
The manager was still walking down to the dressing room when he heard the roar of the local fans celebrating Assane Diao’s injury-time equaliser, but it was clear from Flick’s remarks to the media that his frustration went beyond the final scoreline.
“We played a really bad game from the very beginning,” the 59-year-old said. “The only spell when we started doing something good was after we opened the score in the first half, but we have to play much better than that”.
Flick was sent off for his reaction to Barca conceding a penalty (Cristina Quicler/AFP/Getty Images)
Only Inaki Pena and Raphinha, with a goal-line clearance, prevented Betis from scoring first. Barca found their rhythm, and Robert Lewandowski opened the scoring with the first big chance they had. It was a move involving 27 passes and nine players before Jules Kounde cut the ball back to help La Liga’s top goalscorer get his 16th in the competition.
Flick’s team were clinical and reached the break ahead, but wasted all their efforts when the second half started. Betis levelled with their penalty and Barca seemed unable to cope with the intensity, so Flick decided to act.
“I made changes in the second half because I felt we needed fresh legs,” the Flick said when asked about bringing on De Jong and Ferran Torres after 60 minutes.
De Jong had another one of those nights he won’t want to remember. Five minutes after coming in, the Dutchman fouled Barcelona loanee Vitor Roque in his own box and Lo Celso took the gift. It was a cruel outcome for De Jong, and he can’t be blamed for the malfunctioning team, but his performance revealed the reality: Barcelona’s second unit is unable to improve the team.
This is not the first time the 27-year-old found himself in that position this season. Last month, he came off the bench against Celta Vigo with Barcelona winning by two goals at 15 minutes to go. The Catalans ended up drawing the game.
One week earlier, Flick gave him the chance to start against Real Sociedad, only to sub him off at half-time with Barca trailing 1-0. Two weeks ago, he was unable to propel the team to victory against Las Palmas after coming in as a sub.
Since his impactful 45-minute performance at the Santiago Bernabeu, De Jong has barely been able to register a positive impact for Barca — but he has not been the only one. None of the players who don’t have a place in Flick’s preferred starting line-up has shown themselves able to improve the team.
Fermin Lopez, one of the star players in the second half of last season, a European champion with Spain and best player of the tournament at the Olympics, didn’t even make it off the bench against Betis. He has been way below his best form and is yet to register a goal involvement in La Liga this season. He started in both defeats for Barca last month, against Real Sociedad and Las Palmas, putting on unimpressive displays.
Ferran Torres came on against Betis and scored for the second consecutive game, but he is nowhere near performing well enough to threaten the starting frontline.
Torres got a goal… but is not good enough to start (Cristina Quicler/AFP/Getty Images)
Twenty-one-year-old Pau Victor, who also came on against Betis, is the same. Gavi, another of the most-used players as a sub for Flick, is still on his way to full fitness after returning this season from a severe knee injury.
Then there is the full-back role. There are no trusted backups for Jules Kounde and Alejandro Balde, and it came at a price against Betis. Left-back Gerard Martin has been a liability in several games, the standout being at Vigo when Flick took him off at half-time after he was lucky not to have been sent off.
The other candidate is 18-year-old Hector Fort, who looks as naive and inexperienced as a teenager can be. Fort lost the man he was marking against Las Palmas last week, allowing Fabio Silva to score the winner. In Sevilla, he only came on in the dying minutes but the setup for Betis’ equaliser came via his flank.
“We have a young team too who need to improve a lot,” said Flick. “I think that the loss we had against Las Palmas at home can happen in a season, it was one bad day. But if you look at our recent performances away from home… we need to be much stronger. It’s up to us. We have the quality to win games, but we have to prove it.”
In a nutshell, there is no depth in Flick’s team. The talent is there, but the individuals, for different reasons, are unable to deliver what Barca needs at this moment of the season.
Flick’s best XI is starting to show signs of tiredness. The defensive line has lost focus in the dying minutes of multiple games in recent weeks, while Raphinha and Dani Olmo were subbed off last night after 60 minutes, then Lewandowski in the 74th minute, at a time when the result was 1-1 and Barca needed a goal.
“We changed them all because on Wednesday we have another big game in the Champions League and, as a team, we need to take care of that too,” said Flick.
With a Champions League clash in Dortmund coming up on Wednesday, and a packed schedule after the Christmas break, it is difficult to envisage a successful outcome for Barca this season if fringe players do not raise their game.
GO DEEPER
Does Frenkie de Jong have a future at Barcelona?
(Top photo: Frenkie De Jong and Sergi Altimira by Cristina Quicler/AFP/Getty Images)
