Flick was blunt in his verdict on Sunday night’s 2-1 defeat to Real Madrid at Camp Nou.
“We played against an opponent that was better than in previous Clásicos. We weren’t fresh,” Flick told reporters.
The result ended Barcelona’s nine-match unbeaten start in La Liga and completed a brutal week. Paris Saint-Germain had already beaten Flick’s side 4-2 at the Parc des Princes on Tuesday in the Champions League, with Désiré Doué, Lucas Hernández, Vitinha and Fabián Ruiz on the scoresheet to inflict Barcelona’s first defeat of the season.
Rest before the whiteboard
Flick’s response is to swap video rooms for recovery days.
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“The players need to get away from the football environment for a little while,” he told DAZN and Barcelona’s club media after the Clásico.
The staff plan to use the international break to restore the team’s energy before turning back to tactical work.
“There are no arguments, no excuses,” he said to Yahoo Sports.
Pedri sent off, then ruled out
If the week needed a final twist, it got one. Pedri was shown a second yellow for a foul on Aurélien Tchouaméni and sent off late at Camp Nou before leaving the pitch with a hamstring injury that will keep him out for several weeks, according to ESPN.
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Pedri joined a treatment room that already held Robert Lewandowski, Marc-André ter Stegen, Gavi, Andreas Christensen, Dani Olmo and Joan García. Flick added that Eric García and defender Xavi Espart picked up fresh knocks during the Madrid match.
La Masia on standby
With Christensen and Eric García expected back relatively soon, Flick signalled he may pull more help in from La Masia to patch the first-team squad for the fixtures after the international break.
Barcelona’s next La Liga match is at home to Athletic Club once the international window closes, with Pedri not expected back before late November at the earliest.
