Flick praises Barca’s unity ahead of Real clash

BARCELONA, Spain: Barcelona coach Hansi Flick praised his team’s cohesion and aggressive style ahead of Saturday’s La Liga away game against Real Madrid.

Barca lead Real by three points at the top of the table and are on a four-match winning streak in all competitions, including a recent 4-1 home win against Bayern Munich in the Champions League.

“We have our ideas. Our philosophy is to press high and make it difficult for the opponent to play. Too much space between the lines does not work for us,” Flick told a news conference on Friday.

“The players are brilliant and they keep adapting from game to game. The changes have worked, I believe in the squad, they have so much quality and that’s what we want to see.”

Flick added that he has not decided on a starting XI for El Clasico, but suggested that Fermin Lopez could play an important role.

“I haven’t decided who will start or not, but you know Fermin was involved in three goals (against Bayern),” Flick said.

“That’s exactly what we wanted to see from him and he showed it. We’re very happy that he’s come back from injury and has already performed so well.”

Flick also praised 17-year-old Lamine Yamal’s performance this season.

“Especially for the game against Bayern, I wanted him to do one of the many things he had to do, which was to press (Alphonso) Davies from the back line in midfield, because I knew how much important is him when he started to attack.” Flick said.

“Yamal is a fantastic ball player, you all could appreciate that against Bayern.

“It’s an honor to see what Lamine has done for all of us, and it’s important that he can improve as a defender. And he’s doing that very well.”