‘I want to see this from my team’ – Hansi Flick reveals what lessons he has learned from Barcelona’s defeat to Atlético Madrid

Barcelona manager Hansi Flick insists the painful Copa del Rey elimination at Atlético Madrid has become a crash course in competitive attitude rather than a reason to rip up his blueprint, and he challenged his squad to reproduce the fighting spirit they showed in training when they return to match action.

Speaking on the eve of the next fixture, the German coach refused to hide behind the second-half refereeing flashpoints that followed a chastening opening 45 minutes at the Metropolitano. Instead he placed the spotlight squarely on Barça’s initial lack of edge.

“For me, Atlético were ready for battle,” Flick said. “It was a match at the level of the Champions League. In the first 45 minutes we didn’t have a good competitive attitude, especially in the duels. They were more dynamic. I want to see this from my team.”

The blunt assessment underlined a wider theme: Barcelona’s technical quality is not in doubt, but their readiness to meet elite intensity remains a work in progress. Flick praised Sunday’s session as evidence that the message is landing, citing confidence, goals and a collective willingness to engage in the physical fight he felt was missing on Thursday night.

“Today I liked what I saw in training,” he continued. “We must transfer it to the pitch tomorrow. We have to move forward, there’s a lot of season left and anything is possible if we play as a team and everyone is 100%. We have a lot of quality. Defeats happen from time to time, but it’s important how we react to them.”

The 4-2 extra-time loss was Barça’s second high-profile setback in recent weeks, following the home defeat to Chelsea in which they spent much of the game a man down. Flick brushed off suggestions that either result demands a tactical overhaul, arguing that execution, not ideology, was the issue.

“It doesn’t matter who we play against and their system,” he said. “It depends on us and our level.”

That conviction appears non-negotiable. While critics have questioned whether Flick’s high-line, possession-heavy approach can survive against opponents who press and transition with Atlético’s bite, the coach sees no reason to deviate from a style that has already delivered overwhelming success since his arrival.

The challenge now is translating training-ground intensity into 90-minute consistency. Flick stopped short of singling out individuals, but the implication was clear: every starter must rediscover the bite and concentration that evaporated in Madrid.

Barcelona’s next outing offers an immediate opportunity to prove the lesson has been learned. With the coach’s faith in his methods intact, the onus shifts to the players to show they can match both their manager’s ambition and the standards set by their fiercest rivals.

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