Barcelona coach Hansi Flick has his facet on target for the Champions League semi-finals (LLUIS GENE)
Failing a collapse at Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday, Hansi Flick will take Barcelona by to the semi-finals of this season’s Champions League, confirming the Catalan membership’s reemergence as a real contender to win European soccer’s largest prize.
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This yr marks a decade since Barcelona received the final of their 5 European Cups thus far, when a facet coached by Luis Enrique and spearheaded by Lionel Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez beat Juventus 3-1 in Berlin.
That accomplished a treble after that they had additionally claimed La Liga and the Copa del Rey, and meant that in 10 seasons that they had received the Champions League 4 instances and reached not less than the semi-finals on a complete of eight events.
Nonetheless, the final decade has seen Barca lose their manner on the sphere amid the off-pitch monetary troubles which triggered the departure of Messi, their best ever participant, in 2021.
They’ve been to only one semi-final in Europe’s elite membership competitors since 2015.
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That was in 2019, when Barcelona squandered a 3-0 first-leg lead towards Liverpool by collapsing and dropping 4-0 within the return.
A yr later got here the humiliating 8-2 loss to a Flick-coached Bayern Munich in a one-off quarter-final performed behind closed doorways in Lisbon in the course of the pandemic.
This season is on observe to be their finest for the reason that finish of the Messi period, as Flick’s facet lie 4 factors away from Actual Madrid on the prime of La Liga with seven video games to go and now have the Copa del Rey last to return towards their best rivals on the finish of this month.
– ‘We wish to proceed’ –
With Messi’s inheritor obvious Lamine Yamal firing alongside Raphinha and the veteran Robert Lewandowski, Barcelona look again to their finest, notably towards prime opposition.
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Moreover final Wednesday’s 4-0 win over final season’s Champions League runners-up Dortmund within the quarter-final first leg, their 4-1 win over Bayern within the league section confirmed how ruthless Flick’s staff could be.
In two clashes with Actual this season, Barcelona have received 4-0 away in La Liga and 5-2 within the last of the Spanish Tremendous Cup.
Together with displaying there may be life after Messi at Barcelona, this season has been certainly one of vindication for Flick.
Regardless of piloting Bayern to an excellent 2020 during which they received six trophies together with the Champions League in Lisbon, Flick’s poor stint as Germany boss raised questions on his capacity to make Barcelona nice once more.
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Successful this season’s Champions League last, at Munich’s Allianz Area no much less, would present the 60-year-old actually belongs among the many European teaching elite.
On Saturday, after a 1-0 win at Leganes in La Liga which prolonged their unbeaten run to 24 video games in 2025, Flick instructed reporters: “We have come this far, however we wish to proceed on this path.
“I am completely having fun with having the ability to work with my teaching workers and this staff. We have got an unbelievable ambiance within the facet.”
– ‘Biggest miracle’ –
The hosts on Wednesday could take inspiration from Liverpool’s comeback six years in the past below former Dortmund coach Jurgen Klopp, however are below no illusions concerning the scale of the duty.
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Dortmund are presently eighth within the Bundesliga, at risk of lacking out on European qualification altogether for subsequent season, regardless of a 2-2 draw away to leaders Bayern on Saturday.
Sporting director Lars Ricken mentioned Saturday “we want the best miracle within the historical past of Borussia Dortmund” to get by to the final 4.
Ricken, a Dortmund native who was among the many scorers on the membership’s best evening — the 1997 Champions League last win over Juventus — isn’t any stranger to massive European nights in black and yellow.
“We’ve to attempt to win, whether or not that is sufficient to advance, I do not know,” he mentioned.
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Calling himself “an optimist however a realist”, Dortmund coach Niko Kovac mentioned his facet needed to save lots of face on Tuesday.
“However and not using a spark, a spark of hope, it would not make sense.
“Our ambition is to win the sport. Is it 1-0, 2-1? We’re taking part in at dwelling so we want to give a present to all our supporters.”
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