FC Barcelona were absolutely flying in their first 6 matches of the La Liga season. While they didn’t make any big money signing as their eternal rivals did, they did manage to get someone who has been the main man to turn things around in Barcelona. And that is their new head coach Hansi Flick.
Ever since taking over from Xavi Hernandez who left at the end of last season, the German manager has got great results at Barcelona, demolishing teams 7-0, 4-1, 5-1, etc. Up until last night their only defeat came against Monaco on the Champions League night where they were reduced to 10 men in the opening 11 minutes of the game, hardly the gaffer’s fault.
But last night, it all changed, as Osasuna thrashed the current league leaders 4-2 in the city of Pamplona. Barcelona’s defence was pierced through like a hot knife pierces butter. Inaki Pena, who has as of now taken over Goalkeeping responsibilities after Ter Stegen’s season-ending injury, had a night to remember as Osasuna’s attack led by a highly spirited Bryan Zaragoza scored 4 past him.
This defeat would certainly hurt Barcelona’s morale going forward and might obviously hurt their campaign. Especially a win last night would have given them a chance to go 7 points clear in La Liga if Atletico managed to get a result against Real Madrid in the Madrid Derby on Sunday. But now, they might see Madrid inch closer to them in the table with a win tonight.
The defeat in Pamplona marked the first time since 2012 that Osasuna beat Barcelona at home. It also showed how important a 17-year-old Lamine Yamal is to this Barcelona side, as while the whole team had a disappointing outing, Yamal in 30 minutes did more than every other Barcelona player combined and also managed to score a screamer, albeit in vain.
In 8 matches now in this season in all competitions, Hansi Flick has now lost 2. Suddenly, his bright start in La Liga doesn’t seem that wonderful. So was it just beginner’s luck? Was it a scenario where a new coach brings in a new atmosphere for a while and so the team start off well but later goes back to what it was? Let us know your opinion on Barcelona in the comments below.
