It’s a new season at Barcelona and there is an almost entirely new technical staff.
Since Hansi Flick was announced as Barca’s new coach on May 29 — after club legend Xavi was fired — there have been many changes, some made by the German manager, some by senior leadership.
With Barca set to start their new La Liga campaign on Saturday away to Valencia, here we take a look through the main figures involved — and the key themes that emerged over a pre-season full of new faces and new relationships.
The head coach
Let’s start with Flick. Sources in the dressing room — who, like all those cited in the piece, preferred to speak anonymously to protect relationships — have spoken positively of his influence since taking over, making particular reference to his calming influence following the chaos that engulfed everything towards the end of last term.
There is still a recognition that these are early days, but during Barca’s pre-season tour of the United States, sources on the club’s board of directors were also impressed by the new intensity he has brought to training. They believe he can bring a change the team needs in terms of physicality and discipline, too. For the German, punctuality means arriving five minutes early.
Flick and Jules Kounde before Monday’s 3-0 defeat by Monaco (Javier Borrego/Europa Press via Getty Images)
Many players have reacted positively to his arrival, the younger ones especially. Flick, 59, arrived for the team’s first sessions knowing each of their names and qualities, and sources in the dressing room describe him as a very approachable and communicative person, although it is true that he is not yet fluent in Spanish. He speaks with the players in English.
GO DEEPER
Ten days on tour with Barcelona: How Hansi Flick has looked to calm the chaos
Joan Laporta has wanted a German coach in his project for a long time — ever since his candidacy for the presidency in 2021. After sacking Ronald Koeman and Xavi, he finally has one in Flick.
The physical department
In terms of physical training, there are several new faces for the season. This department is now headed up by Julio Tous — who worked under Antonio Conte at Chelsea — along with Pepe Conde, Rafa Maldonado and German Fernandez. They were all employed before Flick’s arrival — if Xavi had stayed, they were going to work with him.
GO DEEPER
Barcelona sack Xavi: The inside story on manager’s exit
Physical preparation has been a dominant part of pre-season training, as it was something that worried Barca’s senior management last term. Under Xavi, there was only one physical coach.
“With Flick, there has been talk that the physical (training) is one of the changes you will see the most,” Marc-Andre ter Stegen said out on the U.S. tour.
“He has a way of working on the physical stuff and bringing it into the game. He wants to keep the run going and push, for everyone to be at a physical level during the season that allows us to play not just one or two games in a row without rest but three or four because it will be key. We all have to be on our toes because we have to improve in that aspect.”
Flick’s three assistants
As well as a beefed-up physical department, Flick has three assistant coaches: Marcus Sorg, Toni Tapalovic and Heiko Westermann.
Sorg, as with Flick, was one of Joachim Low’s assistants with the German national team. He also served as Flick’s assistant with Germany when he became boss, working there until Flick’s sacking in September 2023.
Sorg and Flick before the Joan Gamper trophy match with Monaco (Joan Valls/Urbanandsport /NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Tapalovic and Flick worked together at Bayern, where the latter was manager from 2019-2021 and the former served as a goalkeeper coach from 2011- 2023. He played a big role in Manuel Neuer’s development. When Tapalovic was sacked, Neuer offered revealing words of support.
“He elevated me and my way of interpreting the game from goalkeeping to another level,” Neuer told The Athletic in February last year. “That blow affected me a lot. I was told by the people in charge at the club. It came out of the blue. For Toni as well. I didn’t understand it at all. It really knocked me down.”
GO DEEPER
Neuer: ‘I felt like my heart was being ripped out. It was the most brutal thing in my career’
At Barca, Tapalovic is now in an assistant role because Ter Stegen already has his man of trust in the goalkeeping coach role. Jose Ramon de la Fuente will continue to train the goalkeepers under Flick. Not counting the medical department or physios, he is the only coach staying on from last season.
As for Westermann, he left his job as Germany Under-19 coach to join Flick’s staff at Barca this summer. A former centre-back, he spent a season at Real Betis in 2015-16 and speaks Spanish well. He has a particular brief with defensive training but, because of his language skills, he is also key in helping communicate Flick’s messages to players across all departments — something that, again according to dressing-room sources, has worked well.
The wildcard: Thiago
Then we come to Thiago.
The former Spain, Liverpool, Bayern Munich and Barca midfielder is not listed officially as one of Flick’s team on the club’s website, but he has been another key member of the German’s staff this summer.
Thiago’s work with Barcelona this summer has been a big hit with players (Eric Alonso/Getty Images)
His situation is complicated and right now there is a degree of uncertainty over the next steps. He is studying to attain his coaching licences, and in July an agreement was reached for him to spend the summer months at Barca as part of his studies. Now sources in the dressing room believe he could stay, such has been the success of this experiment. They say he is the appointment that players have valued most.
Thiago, as a Spanish speaker, is another who acts as a key link between Flick and his charges. The fact that he has only recently retired (at the end of last season) also helps his bond with the players — and, as a midfielder, he has the perfect mix of Barca and Bayern DNA.
(Top photo: Eric Alonso/Getty Images)
