Hansi Flick had already agreed on his contract with Barcelona when he surprised the Barça sports area. “I have seen several Barça B matches,” announced the German coach; “There are very good players.” A few months later, when the Barça delegation was on tour in the United States, Flick had a meeting with the technical secretary to talk about the pivot’s position, orphaned since Busquets had left, without an experienced player after the return of Oriol Romeu to Girona. And, when the possibility of adding Bajcetic was extinguished as soon as the specialists unsuccessfully tried to settle the accounts of the fair playthe technician did not despair, on the contrary. “With Casadó and Bernal I am calm. For that position I need players who understand Barça’s game,” the coach replied. And so it was. With Bernal injured, the command was taken by little Casadó (21 years old and 172 centimeters tall), a giant against a giant like Bayern.
“This is the Masia!” Hansi Flick celebrated, when asked about Casadó after Barcelona’s awakening in the Champions League against the German team (4-1). “It’s incredible,” Flick continued; “If you see him play now and if you know where he comes from… He has improved in everything. He is incredibly good in defense, also with the ball at his feet. This is the quarry, I am very happy. “Everyone sees the quality of these players,” analyzed the German. So, he no longer only praised Casadó, he talked about Fermín López (21 years old), Pedri (21), Baldé (21), Cubarsí (17) and, of course, also Lamine Yamal (17). “Those of us who are from La Masía feel Barça and know what it means,” stressed Fermín López.
Not so long ago, Barcelona jumped from fiasco to fiasco in Europe, without answers to the difficulties when Lionel Messi was still in charge – Rome 2018, Liverpool 2019 and Bayern 2020 -, relegated to the Europa League in the 2022 and 2023 campaigns. With Xavi, Last year, it seemed that Barça regained its place in the Champions League, at least its dignity. But Luis Enrique’s PSG threw him out in the quarterfinals. “Play like Eibar,” the Asturian coach ignored the football of Xavi’s team in an analysis that can be seen in the documentary You have no f… idea.
The solution, then, was in the quarry. What for Xavi was a weakness — “It’s strange that there are Barça players who don’t understand positional play,” the Catalan coach complained — ended up being a strength for Flick. “I am very impressed by the work of La Masia,” warns the German. Casadó, for example, last season trained with the first team, but did not take the field. He only played a total of 35 minutes in four games. He wanted to compete so much that if he was called up, but did not play, the next day he would appear in the Barça B games. Rafa Márquez did trust him (31 games and 2,683 minutes). Casadó fought in the First RFEF while the center back Christensen stayed in the pivot position. Everything changed with Flick.
“We were struck by the high knowledge he had of the quarry,” they warn from the sports area. Cousins Guille and Toni Fernández, both 16 years old, are his favorites; They already made their debut in the first team calls, no less than in the Champions League against Monaco. “There is a lot of quality in the quarry. It is very good news to have you both among us. I have had no doubts about calling them,” Flick stressed.
The coach has appeared in four Juvenil A games and usually appears in the reserve team’s training sessions. He sits on the bench and talks with Bojan (member of the football commission), Alexanco (director of grassroots football) and Toni Hernández (grassroots football coordinator). Flick’s attitude is much more than a gesture towards the youth players. “I had the uncertainty of not knowing if I would start the first games. He trusted me. I am very grateful to you. I want to give 100% so that he can continue counting on me,” Cubarsí said honestly during the national team break.
According to the board, one of the reasons for the dismissal of Xavi Hernández was the lack of confidence he showed in the squad. The coach, however, had consolidated Gavi, Cubarsí and Lamine Yamal in the first team. “What I can say is that we have a situation that must be accepted. La Masia is the identity of this club, they have to be very proud of what they are doing,” explains Flick, when asked about his commitment to grassroots football. The German coach offers peace of mind to the locker room, something that cannot be achieved with just minutes on the field. “Hansi Flick gives us all a lot of confidence,” reveals Lamine Yamal.
“There is no defense that can stop him,” Flick returns the praise to the Mataró striker. Barcelona shines with Lamine Yamal, but grows with the strength of La Masia. According to sources from the coaching staff, Lamine’s football and personal growth is key to amalgamating the locker room, distributed (not divided) between veterans, young people and foreigners, today a group without flags or DNIs. Against Bayern, in addition to Casadó, Fermín López, Pedri, Baldé, Cubarsí and Yamal, Ansu Fati (21), Gavi (20) and Pau Víctor (22) took the field. Iñaki Peña (25) and Dani Olmo (26), trained in Barça youth football, also played in Barcelona’s win over Bayern.
With Xavi Hernández or Hansi Flick, Barcelona does not stop counting financial hardships. However, with the German on the bench, La Masia takes power and Barça regains its prestige in Europe.
