Flick: The Return Match Requires the Impossible, and the Crowd Will Be a Decisive Factor
Hans Flick, the coach of Barcelona, emphasized during the press conference held before his team's match against Atletico Madrid in the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey at Camp Nou, the importance of the return match and the role of the fans in achieving the football miracle.
Flick said: "Everyone knows what awaits us tomorrow. We are four goals behind and we must do the impossible; that is our goal. We know it is not easy, but we will not give up. It is important to keep a clean sheet and believe that we are capable of achieving that."
He continued about the player Lamine Yamal: "The most important thing is for the team to stay focused. The first goal for Lamine came after a great recovery and an excellent pass from Firmin. Lamine has the talent to be in the right place at the right time, and then he performed well, but we need everyone."
Regarding how to surprise Atletico, he said: "We always want to play our style. We thought about everything that might happen that could give us an advantage. We also played well against Villarreal, an excellent opponent, but we have to play as a unit, with and without the ball. We need to press them and win individual duels, especially to avoid losing the ball against teams that rely on quick transitions."
Regarding his experience in recovering from difficult situations, Flick added: "I won't mention the details because it's a private matter. I believe I haven't faced a situation like this before, but it doesn't scare me."
Regarding the player Araujo, he said: "Yes, of course, we have an excellent team, and they are performing well in defense, including Araujo. We will see if he will start, I haven't decided on the lineup yet. I know their strengths, but I need to think about it."
Regarding the team's chances of qualifying, he explained: "I don't know the percentage. To reach the final, we have to do more than just win. We won't give up, and anything is possible."
Regarding Lewandowski's absence and its impact, he said: "We have to accept it and manage it. We haven't had much luck. The absence of a player like him is always a problem, but the team is handling the situation well, and this will give other players the opportunity to show their potential."
Regarding the previous match against Paris Saint-Germain, he added: "I don't think about the past or the future, the most important thing is tomorrow. Yes, we know the history, but our job is to deliver the best performance tomorrow. We didn't perform well in the last match, and we want to see the best version of ourselves and have everyone's support."
He continued about excitement and impulsiveness: "It's always better to focus first on the primary goal. We need to be smart, and we will play with enthusiasm to achieve the goal. We saw a completely different team in the last match with high intensity in play. We must play united as a team, and that is the key."
Regarding the role of the audience in the match, he said: "It is important that everyone who wants to support us can do so during the match. We need to create a perfect connection between the team and the audience, and this is what we love."
Regarding belief in success and opportunities: "We must always believe, every fan in the stadium will provide support. We have a good example against Dortmund; we will score two goals in each half. We know the task is difficult because the opponent is great and caused a lot of problems in the last match, but I believe we are capable of it."
Regarding Pedri's role and managing his playing time, he said: "We have to manage him appropriately. We have other matches after this one, so we'll see how many minutes he can play."
Flick said: "Everyone knows what awaits us tomorrow. We are four goals behind and we must do the impossible; that is our goal. We know it is not easy, but we will not give up. It is important to keep a clean sheet and believe that we are capable of achieving that."
He continued about the player Lamine Yamal: "The most important thing is for the team to stay focused. The first goal for Lamine came after a great recovery and an excellent pass from Firmin. Lamine has the talent to be in the right place at the right time, and then he performed well, but we need everyone."
Regarding how to surprise Atletico, he said: "We always want to play our style. We thought about everything that might happen that could give us an advantage. We also played well against Villarreal, an excellent opponent, but we have to play as a unit, with and without the ball. We need to press them and win individual duels, especially to avoid losing the ball against teams that rely on quick transitions."
Regarding his experience in recovering from difficult situations, Flick added: "I won't mention the details because it's a private matter. I believe I haven't faced a situation like this before, but it doesn't scare me."
Regarding the player Araujo, he said: "Yes, of course, we have an excellent team, and they are performing well in defense, including Araujo. We will see if he will start, I haven't decided on the lineup yet. I know their strengths, but I need to think about it."
Regarding the team's chances of qualifying, he explained: "I don't know the percentage. To reach the final, we have to do more than just win. We won't give up, and anything is possible."
Regarding Lewandowski's absence and its impact, he said: "We have to accept it and manage it. We haven't had much luck. The absence of a player like him is always a problem, but the team is handling the situation well, and this will give other players the opportunity to show their potential."
Regarding the previous match against Paris Saint-Germain, he added: "I don't think about the past or the future, the most important thing is tomorrow. Yes, we know the history, but our job is to deliver the best performance tomorrow. We didn't perform well in the last match, and we want to see the best version of ourselves and have everyone's support."
He continued about excitement and impulsiveness: "It's always better to focus first on the primary goal. We need to be smart, and we will play with enthusiasm to achieve the goal. We saw a completely different team in the last match with high intensity in play. We must play united as a team, and that is the key."
Regarding the role of the audience in the match, he said: "It is important that everyone who wants to support us can do so during the match. We need to create a perfect connection between the team and the audience, and this is what we love."
Regarding belief in success and opportunities: "We must always believe, every fan in the stadium will provide support. We have a good example against Dortmund; we will score two goals in each half. We know the task is difficult because the opponent is great and caused a lot of problems in the last match, but I believe we are capable of it."
Regarding Pedri's role and managing his playing time, he said: "We have to manage him appropriately. We have other matches after this one, so we'll see how many minutes he can play."