Flick: Athletic Bilbao Has a Great Coach, Rodri's Participation in Question

Hans Flick, the head coach of Barcelona, confirmed his team's readiness for the upcoming match against Athletic Bilbao. He also addressed several issues concerning the squad, including Rodri's participation, Gavi's condition, Alejandro Balde's future, and the possibility of signing a new striker.

Hansi Flick addressed his stance on acquiring a new forward, stating: "I believe the president has been clear, and Deco and I agree with him."

Regarding Balde, Barcelona's head coach said: "He is part of the team, and we will decide tomorrow whether he will play or not. The important thing is that he is 100% committed, and he is. He is only 22 years old, still young with great potential, and he must continue to develop. He is one of the La Masia players who carry the club's colors in their hearts, but there are other La Masia players who want to play as well. They must be committed and give their all for Barcelona."

Regarding Julian Alvarez and the future of the striker deal, Flick declined to go into details, saying: "I don’t want to talk about it, I understand it’s about Julian or no one. I know the club's situation, and very good deals have been made. The club needs to think about the future, and as a coach, I want more and more. I have complete confidence in my team, and we need to find solutions. The quality is immense, Deco is doing a great job, we are looking to the future and what is best now, as well as in the next three or five years. We want the club to be stable."

Regarding Croatian goalkeeper Dominik Livaković, Flick said: "We talked about the situation of the starting goalkeeper, and it's good to have experienced goalkeepers for the coming years. We have Szczęsny, and we need to wait to make a decision."

Hansi Flick addressed the recognition of Barcelona players who won the World Cup, stating: "I focus on the match, they did a great job, and the title is deserved, I am focused on the match."

Regarding Lamine Yamal, Barcelona's coach said: "He suffered from some headaches, but he is a genius. He had three weeks off, and now he has only trained for a few days and wasn't able to reach his peak levels. We need to work on getting him back to his best. I'm happy he played 60 minutes and contributed to the first two goals against Elche. He gave us options for substitutions, he did a lot in the match, and he is working well. He is progressing, we need him, he is an amazing player."

Regarding Rodri's participation against Athletic Bilbao, Flick explained: "The plan is for him to play some minutes." He also spoke about facing Athletic Bilbao, saying: "I know their coach; he was here with us. He has a clear structure, is a very good coach, and fits perfectly with Athletic's philosophy."

Flick spoke about the midfield duo Rodri and Pedri, saying: "We also have Marc Bernal in this position, Rodri has more experience, and he is the clear leader. Having him alongside Pedri will allow us to control the ball and the opponent, which is very important. Against Elche, we lost some balls. Rodri is one of the best players, and we will enjoy having them together."

Regarding Gavi, Flick reassured about his condition, saying: "He is fine, much better than he was after the match. The injury wasn't serious to that extent; he will need a week to recover and return to training with the team."

Regarding the possibility of signing a new center-back, Flick stated: "I believe we are good with the players we currently have in the back line. We also have other options; Eric, Jules Koundé, and Gerard can change positions. Andreas and Gerard have been very good, and we have Koulibaly, who is one of the best center-backs. I want to take care of him; he will participate in many matches again, and he wants to play. He’s young, has just returned from winning the World Cup, and received the Best Young Player award. I am very happy to have him."

Flick spoke about Barcelona's desire to continue competing for titles, noting that Lamine Yamal should not change his mentality after winning. He said: "I don't know if I would understand a change happening; when you are a true champion, you are always striving for the next title. This should be his mentality. All players have this hunger and desire to achieve a third consecutive league title; that would be fantastic, and we are ready to fight for it."