BARCELONA WINS, BUT FLICK DEMANDS MORE; RAPHINHA AGREES IMPROVEMENT NEEDED
Barcelona beat Alaves 3-1, securing four straight La Liga wins. Yet, Hansi Flick was unhappy with the performance, leading Raphinha to comfort him and promise improvement.
After Barcelona's 3-1 win against Alaves on Saturday, Barcelona star Raphinha was seen comforting head coach Hansi Flick.
Lamine Yamal evened the score after Pablo Ibanez's early goal. Then, Dani Olmo scored, putting Barcelona ahead 2-1 by halftime.
For most of the second half, Barcelona's lead felt shaky until Olmo scored again near the end of the game.
With this win, the team got back on track after a tough 3-0 loss to Chelsea in the Champions League.
Raphinha comforts Flick after Barcelona wins.
This victory also means Barcelona has now won four La Liga games in a row, yet Flick seemed bothered by how his team played.
Raphinha, who played for an hour, was spotted talking to Flick on the bench after the game. Flick seemed upset.
When asked about their talk. Flick told reporters Raphinha said the same thing I said before, that we will get better. We'll play much better in the games ahead.
Flick also said his team needs to improve many things, even though they won on Saturday.
I’m glad we got the three points, but we have to get better at many things, Flick said. For example, we had chances but did not score. We need to work on that.
What did Raphinha say after Barcelona's win?
Raphinha was happy about the win, and he agreed with Flick that the team needs to play better soon.
The coach felt that we could've done much more, and we know we can play better too, Raphinha said.
He feels the team isn't playing its best, and I agree. We have to improve a lot, but the most important thing today was winning.
We have time to fix our mistakes, and I’m sure we’ll get back to our best. It's great to win when you play well, but if we play poorly, I don't care, as long as we win.
After starting for the first time since his injury, Raphinha hopes to keep his spot for Tuesday's important game against Atletico Madrid.
Barcelona knows they need to play well to beat Atletico, who have won their last seven games.
BARCELONA TARGETS SAVINHO: MAN CITY WINGER RAPHINHA'S LONG-TERM SUCCESSOR
Barcelona is reportedly eyeing Man City's promising 21-year-old Brazilian winger Savinho. The Catalan club sees him as the ideal replacement for Raphinha down the line.
A recent report from Fichajes says Barcelona has its eyes on Manchester City winger Savinho. The Catalan club is supposedly thinking of the Brazilian player as a possible replacement for Raphinha down the road.
Savinho's Been Doing Well in the Premier League
Savinho hasn't been a regular starter for Man City this season, but he's still managed to impress in attack. The Brazilian has scored one goal and assisted on two others in 15 games for Man City in all tournaments this season.
The 21-year-old has shown he can be a threat, averaging 1.55 shots per 90 minutes in the Premier League, with 42.9% of those shots hitting the target. Savinho is also pretty good at passing, completing 79.5% of his attempted passes in the English top league (stats from fbref.com).
His contract with Man City runs through the summer of 2031, so it won't be simple for Barcelona to get him cheap next year.
What Savinho Would Offer Barcelona
Savinho is a solid dribbler and can make some exciting runs out wide. He's got an ability to make key passes in the final third and can shoot with power from a distance.
The Brazilian player can score and set up goals when he plays regularly and feels confident on the pitch. He already knows La Liga well, so he should adapt to Barcelona pretty quickly.
Savinho could add quality and depth to Barca's attack under manager Hansi Flick. He's got the skills to compete for a starting role at the club and could be a good replacement for Raphinha in the future.
At 21, Savinho has the potential to become a star in European soccer. He could even assist Barcelona in competing for big titles in the next ten years. So, Flick should seriously consider trying to sign him this January or at the end of the season.
ANALYSIS: LAMINE YAMAL AND DANI OLMO DELIVER AGAINST TOUGH ALAVES OPPOSITION
Barcelona overcame an early scare to defeat Alaves 3-1. Teen star Lamine Yamal and a Dani Olmo brace sealed the comeback win on the club's 126th anniversary.
After Pablo Ibanez surprised everyone with an early goal, Barca answered back thanks to their young star, Lamine Yamal, with an assist from Raphinha, who was back in action.
Olmo put Barca ahead in the first half and then scored again late in the game, securing their win in their second game back at Camp Nou, which is still being rebuilt.
Barca's 126th birthday celebrations weren't as lively as usual after Chelsea beat them 3-0 in the Champions League earlier in the week.
Ronald Araujo and Frenkie de Jong were out, and Jules Kounde started on the bench after scoring an own goal at Stamford Bridge.
Flick put Raphinha, the Brazilian winger, in the starting lineup for the first time since his injury. He also brought Marc Bernal back into midfield for his first start for Barca since August 2024, after he recovered from knee surgery.
Last weekend, Barcelona easily won 4-0 against Athletic Bilbao in their first game back home. However, Alaves put up a much tougher fight.
Alaves got an early lead when Ibanez scored after Marc Casado failed to clear a corner, and Victor Parada passed the ball back toward the goal.
Flick's team quickly responded when Yamal powerfully shot the ball into the net after Raphinha's low cross found him. Dani Olmo also tried to hit the ball but missed.
Barca's goalie, Joan Garcia, made an amazing save to stop Calebe just before Barca took the lead.
Raphinha was involved in the goal again, passing the ball back for Olmo, who shot it into the near post.
Yamal almost increased Barca's lead, but his shot hit the post after he got past Antonio Sivera.
Lucas Boye almost made Yamal pay for his miss, but his shot went just wide before halftime.
Barca's playmaker, Pedri Gonzalez, also came back from injury as a substitute in the second half, and the 45,000 fans in the stands cheered loudly.
Yamal's shot from the edge of the box went just wide, and Olmo's shot rolled past the post as Barca struggled to finish the game.
Alaves almost tied the score through Boye, but Barca's defender, Pau Cubarsi, made a critical block to stop them.
Finally, Olmo scored the third goal in stoppage time, beating Sivera after a great setup from Yamal.