Barcelona’s Struggles Without Yamal Continue, Coach Flick Calls Performance ‘Very Poor’
On September 28, in Pamplona, Barcelona faced Osasuna without Lamine Yamal in the starting lineup, and the team lost 4-2. On November 10, Yamal was also absent for Barcelona’s 1-0 defeat to Real Sociedad. Last night, in Vigo against Celta, the young winger was again missing. This time, however, the result changed, but it wasn’t a win — Barcelona drew 2-2.
Barcelona has won 11 La Liga matches this season, but without the 17-year-old star Yamal, they’ve failed to secure full points in three matches. After the draw, Barcelona coach Hans Flick challenged his squad to win without Yamal if they could. Reflecting on the draw, Flick described the team’s performance as ‘very poor.’
Barcelona was ahead thanks to goals from Raphinha in the 15th minute and Robert Lewandowski in the 61st. However, the downfall began after the 80th minute. In the 82nd minute, defensive midfielder Marc Casado was sent off with a second yellow card for fouling Celta’s Iliax Moriba. Down to 10 players, Barcelona conceded two goals in the 84th and 86th minutes, allowing Celta to snatch a point. The first goal came from Alfonso González, following a mistake by Barcelona’s Jules Koundé, and the second was from Hugo Álvarez.
After losing the points, Flick said, “We played very poorly. There was nothing like what we usually see. It wasn’t the football we expect.” Speaking to streaming platform DAZN, he added, “The match was under our control, but the red card had an impact. They scored two goals in two moves, and we need to learn from that.”
Lewandowski had one goal disallowed in the match, but he remains the league’s top scorer with 15 goals this season. Raphinha could have added another, but his shot hit the post. Barcelona goalkeeper Inaki Peña made several crucial saves, especially one from Hugo Álvarez’s attempt, which he blocked with his foot.
Meanwhile, Atletico Madrid made a comeback to win 2-1 against Alaves, marking Diego Simeone’s 700th match as their coach.
Barcelona leads the table with 34 points from 14 matches, while Atletico follows with 29 points from the same number of games. Real Madrid is third with 27 points from 12 matches.
