En route to picking up three points against Levante on Saturday, Barcelona played on the back foot for most of the match before overcoming a two-goal deficit in the second half to eventually post a 3-2 win by the final whistle.
“The important thing is that we came away with three points, but we have to analyze the game,” Flick told Mundo Deportivo after the match. “Each matchday should help us continue to grow. Levante didn't make it easy for us because they have very fast players who make the game difficult.”
At the 15 minute mark, Barcelona allowed Levante forward Ivan Romero to dance his way into the box before depositing the ball in the back of the FCB net, tricky footwork in tow. Later on in the first half, Barcelona committed a penalty when Alejandro Balde was called for a handball in the box. On the surface, Balde turned away from the Levante shot, but the ball clipped his arm before spiraling out of play, eventually resulting in a Levante penalty. Jose Luis Morales successfully converted the pen, giving Levante a dangerous 2-0 lead at the break.
How would Barca react to halftime deficit?
From that point, Barcelona manager Hansi Flick made a few adjustments to his lineup, taking off Marc Casado and Marcus Rashford at halftime in favor of Dani Olmo and Gavi. After that, the Catalan club generated a couple quick attacks and were able to quickly pull level thanks to goal-scoring efforts from Pedri (49’) on a strike from distance and Ferran Torres (52’), who was unlucky on a pair of near attempts in the first half.
“In the second half, I had to change things and put Raphinha back in the starting eleven,” Flick said. “Fortunately, Pedri’s goal helped us.”
Flick proceeded to bring on Robert Lewandowski in the 76th minute to help bolster the Barcelona attack, but it was talented youngster Lamine Yamal who broke the stalemate in stoppage time. From the right wing, Yamal cut back onto his left foot and appeared to send a bending cross into the box for a teammate, but the ball redirected off Levante’s Unai Elgezabel and into the net for an own goal, sending three points and the victory in Barcelona’s direction.
“I'm proud of my team,” Flick said. “We tried to come back and got three points. We believed until the end. It's not easy because our opponents usually play us very deep, and we have to improve in games with those approaches. This game will help us a lot to continue growing,”
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Next, Barcelona will have a week off before facing Rayo Vellanco on Sunday, Aug. 31.
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