German tactician, Hansi Flick has called on Lamine Yamal to put Barcelona’s bruising loss to Chelsea behind him and focus on delivering a strong response when they face Alaves in LaLiga on Saturday.
Barcelona were swept aside 3-0 at Stamford Bridge in the Champions League on Tuesday, a result that also saw Ronald Araujo receive a red card.
Lamine Yamal endured a difficult night, managing one attempt on goal and completing four of his 10 dribbles. He did, however, win 12 of his 17 duels and created more chances than any of his teammates.
The 18-year-old found little joy against his fellow Spaniard Marc Cucurella, who kept him unusually quiet before he was replaced in the 80th minute.
Speaking ahead of the Alaves clash, Flick urged the teenager to move on swiftly from the setback and show his usual quality.
“Lamine’s mood is good,” he said. “A lot of players, when we change them, are not happy. I was also a player and, maybe sometimes, I did not show the right reaction, but it’s like that. It’s emotion.
“For me, Cucurella is one of the best left-backs in the world. It’s not easy to play him, he’s very smart, very intelligent in the defence.
“The next step now for Lamine is to show again it’s not about this match, forget it. Alaves is now the important thing, and he has to show his best performance, his best level.”
Barcelona will be without Fermin Lopez, who is out for two weeks with a calf problem. Araujo is also expected to miss the trip after coming down with a stomach bug.
There is brighter news for Flick, with Pedri set to return to action, while Raphinha and Marcus Rashford are in contention to start after featuring from the bench against Chelsea.
“I have really missed Rapha,” Flick said. “I see him as one of the most important players in the team, with the philosophy we have and how we want to play.
“He’s a big positive in our game when we defend, when we start the pressing. But also in transition, he’s unbelievably good.
“It’s not for nothing he scored so many goals last season. He has the hunger to show how good he is this season again after a fantastic year last season.”
Alaves head to Barcelona sitting 14th in the table after a narrow back-to-back losses to Celta Vigo and Girona. Their only win in their last five league matches was a 2-1 victory over Espanyol earlier this month.
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