Flick embraces healthy fat: Barça-Olympiacos hot takes

BarcelonaBarça's restorative European thrashing of Olympiacos (6-1). The blue and garnets took advantage of the dynamite A great Fermín López and a favorable refereeing decision destroyed the Piraeus team. Here are some quick notes.

The classic will set the trend. Yes, this Sunday's visit to the Bernabéu in La Liga will serve to show where this Barça stands. Unlike last season, when the Blaugrana were flying like airplanes and could approach any demanding duel with a winning aura and the guarantee of subduing anyone with intensity, hunger, and talent, this year everything is a little more difficult. If on Saturday it was Araujo who dressed up as Alexandro, this Tuesday Olympiacos suffered a thrashing that can be misleading if not put into context. A good ham should always have a healthy amount of fat, but the difference is made by the well-cured fiber. Well, football is something. The fact that Rashford's goals to fill the stomach at the end, with the opponent beaten, don't hide the fact that that same opponent was troubling even when playing with a man down.

Fermín's luck. With his No At Chelsea in the last few busy days of the transfer market, he thwarted a deal that some of those who govern Barça today would have welcomed. If he had gone to the Premier League, he would have showered the club's accounts with more than 60 million, a figure that would generate fair play financial and cut losses now that his term is ending. The usual suspects would have defended the sale of a player whose competitive edge is gold in times like the ones Barça is going through now, a discontinuous team, fertile in the flashes and that can be dominated for periods by anyone. Fortunately, Fermín remained solid under Flick. Without him, the afternoon against Olympiacos would have been much harder to swallow. hat trick did, the little angel.

If it had happened the other way around... Barça ended up thrashing Olympiacos, but the match wasn't all roses. In the first half, the Greeks created chances thanks to a daring yet well-coordinated pressing. And in the second, they scared the hell out of Montjuïc before and after the 2-1, scored by El Kaabi from the penalty spot. In the 57th minute, with the murmurs growing in the stands due to the visitors' dominance, the referee showed Hezze a second yellow card for a completely fortuitous incident involving Casadó, who had previously fouled the Argentine player. Mendilibar, who still hasn't tasted victory in Barcelona, ​​protested a huge decision that, had it been reversed, would have rightly inflamed the Barcelona fans. Sometimes, mistakes go in your favor.

Historic Lamine Yamal. Still far from his peak form, the winger from Rocafonda continues to rack up starts. It's wonderful news that his groin pain is easing, that he's scoring goals even if they're penalties—the celebration of the title is superfluous—and also that he's putting in the effort in defense without Raphinha and Ferran, the two Barça forwards who work the hardest off the ball. Sunday is the derby, and we already know how he behaves in these situations, especially when he's triggered early. In the meantime, he continues to make history. At 18 years and 100 days old, he's already the youngest player in history, having played 25 Champions League matches. It's best not to normalize what he's doing.