Flick talks Olmo, Fermin, Ansu, Gavi, Frenkie, Toni and Guille Fernandez ahead of AS Monaco vs Barcelona | OneFootball

After making a brilliant start to his tenure as FC Barcelona manager in La Liga, Hansi Flick will be hoping to carry that momentum forward into the UEFA Champions League.

Barcelona will kickstart their European campaign tomorrow when they take on AS Monaco at Stade Louis II, aiming to extend their winning start to the season to six games.

On the eve of the match, manager Hansi Flick attended the customary press conference during which he discussed the club’s objectives and the injuries plaguing the squad, among other topics.

Looking back at the strong start that his Barcelona team have made to the season, Flick said:

“I think our idea when we started here was to play well. I think we’ve done well and we’ll see how the intensity is, how they press… so far it’s going well.”

Explaining how he has gone about things and how the players have responded to his methods, the German tactician remarked:

“When I arrived I realised that there were players with a lot of quality, with players who were 15 years old and now they are 16, we were incorporating international players and we are seeing more and more.

“We can give them the philosophy of how we want them to play, but in the end it has to happen on the pitch, and the latest results have gone well, they are very stable and this is our key to success for now.”

On the injuries

Barcelona lost in-form new signing Dani Olmo to an injury this past weekend against Girona, with the Spaniard set for a month out. When asked about the plan to replace him in the team, Flick said:

“Dani has his own quality on the ball, in front of goal and the confidence to shoot. We’ll see, I hope we can continue to play at the same level without him.”

Another significant blow that Barcelona suffered this week was losing Fermin Lopez to an injury on the same day he returned to training after recovering from a previous one.

Fermin Lopez is out with injury. (Photo by Alex Caparros/Getty Images)

Explaining what went down with the 21-year-old, Flick said: “It’s a shame because I feel a bit responsible. Nobody wanted to leave him in the U21s and I spoke to him, so I feel a bit responsible.

“When I was with the doctor yesterday, the truth is that I felt very sorry for him, you have to take care of the players.”

On the general injury situation in the squad, he added: “In the last few weeks we have been gradually working with the players, they have been improving from their injuries. Ansu has been able to train well and we are very happy to be able to count on him because he gives us other possibilities.

“We have talked about Dani, Gavi is also training little by little, as is Frenkie. In both the cases, we have to be careful.”

With Ansu Fati back in the squad and likely to play for Barcelona for the first time in over a year, Flick was asked about his plans for the forward and where he saw him fit the best in the team.

“The thing is, I don’t know. He is ready to play, and when he is ready to play at all, he can play 45 minutes. I know his favourite position, but I’m going to leave it a little bit in suspense,” he said in response.

“When he’s on the pitch he really enjoys the little games, scoring goals.”

On the Fernandez cousins and La Masia

Flick has called up two teenage gems, Toni and Guille – the Fernandez cousins – for tomorrow’s game against Monaco, despite them being only 16 years old. Explaining the decision, he said:

“In the first answer, I was talking about them. They started at 15 and now they’re 16. It’s impressive how La Masia makes them develop and perform. When we need a player, we know that in La Masia we can find him. I have no doubt that they will play very well.”

In his short time at the club, Flick has fully embraced the idea and philosophy of bringing up players from La Masia, with as many as 14 homegrown players in the squad for the Monaco game.

“When I accepted this job I accepted the club’s situation. La Masia is a treasure that Barça has and we have to make the most of it, you only have to look at the number of players we have in the team,” he said.

Toni and Guille Fernandez in the squad. (Photo courtesy: FC Barcelona official website)

“As of today, I can say that the Fernandez cousins are ready to play and improve their performance. I don’t know what will happen tomorrow but I’m still very positive, although in football it’s not always fair, we’ll have to see what happens.”

On the Champions League

Having made a statement performance in their last two La Liga matches against Real Valladolid and Girona, Flick was asked if Barcelona intended to do the same tomorrow and announce themselves as contenders to win the Champions League.

In response, he said: “In the last game we showed that we played very seriously, against Girona it was a level game, we played very well, but we need the pressure. They suffered and we scored goals.

“Tomorrow we face a great opponent, they are a very good team, with the new format of the Champions League, which is the best in the world. I think we are on the right track.”

Earlier in the press conference, Jules Kounde made it clear that Barcelona aim to win the Champions League this season. Echoing the sentiments, Flick said:

“Yes, I think so. A club like Barça, the big clubs want to win titles, and as I said, the Champions League is the best competition in the world.

“We have to be ready to play against the best teams, but if you are not 100% focused, you have no place in this competition.”

Barcelona have not had the best of track records in the Champions League in recent seasons but Flick insisted that he was not bothered by the past, saying:

“I don’t care about the past, we have to focus on the now. The team has a full house of wins in La Liga and we are confident.

“We need to be aggressive and focused, that’s what you need in a competition like the Champions League. The five wins are now in the past and it’s time to prove it in the Champions League.”

Giving his thoughts about Monaco and what Barcelona can expect from Adi Hutter’s men, Flick said:

“I know Adi very well. In the last game we saw the positive aspects of Monaco, they work very well defensively. We need the confidence and concentration to cover any gaps and create chances. We have a plan on how to do that and I hope we can do it.”

Source: Mundo Deportivo