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Barcelona fans were left disappointed with the club's starting line-up to face Villarreal in La Liga on Sunday (September 22). Coach Hansi Flick introduced a few changes in the starting XI, including players who are usually not starters for the club.
Flick went for a 4-3-3 line-up, diverging from his usual 4-2-3-1 formartion. Marc-Andre ter Stegen features as the starting GK, alongside a backline including Gerard Martin, Inigo Martinez, Sergi Dominguez, and Jules Kounde. The midfield features Pedri, Eric Garcia and Pablo Torre. The attacking line-up includes Raphinha, Robert Lewandowski and Lamine Yamal.
Flick notably rested Pau Cubarsi and Alejandro Balde, who usually start with Inigo Martinez in the defense. Pablo Torre and Eric Garcia featured in the midfield, despite not being usual starters.
Fans took to X to react to Hansi Flick's starting XI, with many questioning his unexpected inclusions and exclusions. One Culer wrote:
"Our depth is disgustingly bad with the lack of depth we cannot compete over a 60 game season. Not very confident about the match."
"More rotation from Flick. Not the expected response after the surprising defeat in midweek. We should be putting out a strong statement with this match," another person opined.
"Why am I fearing," another user added.
"Why bench Cubarsi or Balde???," a fan questioned.
Culers continued to analyze the rotation from Flick, having mixed feelings about the line-up. One wrote:
"This line in a big game flick has lost it"
"What’s that defense man," another user added.
"Casado at rest I love. Gerrard Martin and Sergi Dominguez suck, but I'm confident," a fan commented.
"Very interesting. Happy to see Pablo Torre get the start. I'm a bit nervous as Villarreal is not a team you should rotate against but I trust Flick," another Culer wrote.
Barcelona have maintained an impressive form in La Liga so far, securing five out of five wins. However, they were off to a rough start in the UEFA Champions League with a 2-1 loss to Monaco in their opening game on September 19.
"It will be a tough game" - Barcelona coach Hansi Flick makes feelings clear ahead of La Liga clash vs Villarreal
In the pre-match press conference on Saturday (September 21), Barcelona boss Hansi Flick indicated that Villarreal could be a tough opponent. He said (via forblaugrana):
“It will be a tough game, Villarreal has the third most goals in La Liga.”
The German coach also explained how Barcelona will be dealing with the unavailability of multiple players due to injuries. Key players in the squad, including Ronald Araujo, Dani Olmo, Gavi and Frenkie de Jong have been out due to injuries for a while now.
"No full squad? That’s fine and I don’t think about that. What I have is a team. These things happens to other clubs also with unlucky injuries, but we have to manage and overcome that," Flick said.
Barcelona will be desperate to secure three crucial points against Villarreal to maintain their position at the top of the La Liga table. Their arch-rivals Real Madrid are at the second position with only one point behind, making it crucial for La Blaugrana to continue their winning streak to hold the lead.
