Hansi Flick | Barcelona boss

[2 man midfield]

Understand, my bad. Maybe I'll rephrase. Flick has proved that good managers don't need time and backing, or loads of new signings either. They can make a team tick right away. Great manager.

could say the same about Ole tbf. Let’s see if it’s more than a new manager bounce.

 

[TheReligion]

It's not shit it's the simple truth. You are just obsessed with defending the indefensible. In every thread.

No I’m not. I’m just fed up of people trying to force talk of United and Ten Hag in every thread on the forum. Sad acts.

Some people come on here for a laugh and escape not to see the same thing in every single thread. Like Groundhog Day. It’s simply selfish posting.

 

[tomaldinho1]

It's not shit it's the simple truth. You are just obsessed with defending the indefensible. In every thread.

Flick chat only - it is hella boring when threads get derailed.

They looked great, i do think Real have big issues but Flick couldn’t have wished for a better start: 30 points from 33 in the league and smashed two teams in 2 games (one being Bayern) in the CL.

 

[Eddy_JukeZ]

To be fair, he’s like 60 and yet what had he done before Bayern? And with the team he had there it isn’t hard to see why some would still be sceptical. It’s like Pep until he came to the PL, he always had that doubt about him.

That was a stupid doubt considering his body of work before the Premier League.

Flick's work that Bayern season was remarkable. He took over at the start of the season and turned them into a machine. That is miles better than anything ETH achieved.

 

[2 man midfield]

That was a stupid doubt considering his body of work before the Premier League.

Flick's work that Bayern season was remarkable. He took over at the start of the season and turned them into a machine. That is miles better than anything ETH achieved.

It wasn’t that stupid. He’d always had Messi, Xavi and Iniesta, then at Bayern he inherited a team that had just won the treble and couldn’t get them past the semis. The doubts were only really put to bed once he started winning at city.

 

[Cheimoon]

It's not shit it's the simple truth. You are just obsessed with defending the indefensible. In every thread.

No, he's right. Not every thread should turn into another discussion on how United, their owners, individuals players, and/or the manager suck - which is what keeps happening. Back on topic.

 

[Eddy_JukeZ]

It wasn’t that stupid. He’d always had Messi, Xavi and Iniesta, then at Bayern he inherited a team that had just won the treble and couldn’t get them past the semis. The doubts were only really put to bed once he started winning at city.

It was stupid to me and I think others would agree. His teams were historically dominant prior to the Premier League. People thinking the Premier League would expose him or it was a level above were always silly.

His Barcelona side were arguably the greatest club side ever and he wasn't the only manager with Messi, Xavi and Iniesta at his disposal. And you can make a strong argument that all 3 of those players were at their best under Pep.

Taking over a team that won the treble and improving upon it is almost impossible, but I am pretty sure the Bayern fans on here were very happy with the job Pep did at the club. They were ravaged by injuries vs Barcelona in the 2015 CL semi-finals and seriously unlucky vs Atletico in the following season. He blundered heavily vs Real in 2014 by changing his tactics for the 2nd leg, but he's not flawless. Other managers have blundered in the CL.

Anyways, we're going off-topic here. We can agree to disagree.

 

[2 man midfield]

It was stupid to me and I think others would agree. His teams were historically dominant prior to the Premier League. People thinking the Premier League would expose him or it was a level above were always silly.

His Barcelona side were arguably the greatest club side ever and he wasn't the only manager with Messi, Xavi and Iniesta at his disposal. And you can make a strong argument that all 3 of those players were at their best under Pep.

Taking over a team that won the treble and improving upon it is almost impossible, but I am pretty sure the Bayern fans on here were very happy with the job Pep did at the club. They were ravaged by injuries vs Barcelona in the 2015 CL semi-finals and seriously unlucky vs Atletico in the following season. He blundered heavily vs Real in 2014 by changing his tactics for the 2nd leg, but he's not flawless. Other managers have blundered in the CL.

Anyways, we're going off-topic here. We can agree to disagree.

He wasn’t, but then Luís Enrique went and won the treble with them in 2015. So you can see why a lot of people thought it was the team and not the coach. Until he went to city the following year and built a new team, (albeit with the aid of a blank chequebook and a disregard of the rules) he always had that asterisk.

 

[Red the Bear]

Why weren't we all over him in the spring?

The German stint unfairly tarnished his reputation somewhat.

He's out of reach now unfortunately.

 

[Fallon d'Floor]

The German stint unfairly tarnished his reputation somewhat.

He's out of reach now unfortunately.

I wouldn't say unfairly. Germany really did look poor under him.

It seems that he suits club management. More time to work with the players. Look at how well timed those offside traps were. Precision. That's obviously been worked on a lot.

Then again, he did have a lot of success in international football as an assistant manager. It is strange how badly the Germany job went after his first few games.

 

[Winrar]

So can we never hear it's a process again. Can we never hear it's a 3-year plan again? Can we never hear it's a rebuild that takes years, again.
Man came in, and in 3 months has done what Hag can't do in 3 years and 600m spent.
All we need is good manager to make our team world class again now, not in 5 years. Enough of this United way crap.
Oh and sack ETH asap

Apparently INEOS didn’t have any options for replacing ETH.

 

[Red the Bear]

I wouldn't say unfairly. Germany really did look poor under him.

It seems that he suits club management. More time to work with the players. Look at how well timed those offside traps were. Precision. That's obviously been worked on a lot.

Then again, he did have a lot of success in international football as an assistant manager. It is strange how badly the Germany job went after his first few games.

It was a mistake from him to accept the job in the first place.

National management can be quite different than club management and most in the know should already know that so for it to take this long before he landed a new major gig was a bit of a disappointment, what he achieved with Bayern was exceptional.

 

[bosnian_red]

I wouldn't say unfairly. Germany really did look poor under him.

It seems that he suits club management. More time to work with the players. Look at how well timed those offside traps were. Precision. That's obviously been worked on a lot.

Then again, he did have a lot of success in international football as an assistant manager. It is strange how badly the Germany job went after his first few games.

International tournament, flukes can happen basically. They missed a stupid amount of chances vs Japan and just threw that game away with a Neuer clanger if I remember, had an excellent game against Spain that they drew and then Spain didn't care about their 3rd game and basically threw it away which eliminated Germany.

A coach can only do so much, but ultimately especially in international tournaments, you need the luck.

 

[amolbhatia50k]

Would love a manager like him. His impact on Barcelona’s football has been so immediate.

 

[amolbhatia50k]

Why weren't we all over him in the spring?

Because we have no vision or inventiveness. We look through lists of names and judge reputation, track record etc but not the actual football which is usually secondary.

 

[hasanejaz88]

International tournament, flukes can happen basically. They missed a stupid amount of chances vs Japan and just threw that game away with a Neuer clanger if I remember, had an excellent game against Spain that they drew and then Spain didn't care about their 3rd game and basically threw it away which eliminated Germany.

A coach can only do so much, but ultimately especially in international tournaments, you need the luck.

Yea. People like to compare us getting out in the group stages in 2022 to 2018 but both were vastly different. We actually weren't that bad in 2022 and just really missed a clinical striker.

I thought he was unfairly sacked after a few bad results given he had a great start. But then again we have looked better under Naglesmann, who is a top coach himself, it had helped that Kroos came back for the tournament and our younger players improved (Havertz, Musiala, Wirtz).

 

[Mb194dc]

The German stint unfairly tarnished his reputation somewhat.

He's out of reach now unfortunately.

He's like the anti Southgate. His Germany team were statistically very good, but they lost of a lot of games the stats said they should win.

So few games at International level, managers need the luck. He only had 25 in two years.

Not true so at club level where you can play 60 games odd a season. A bad manager will get found out.

 

[AndySmith1990]

Oh look, yet another example of a new manager making an instant impact.

 

[Pughnichi]

His current performance with the almost exact same squad is giving me huge red flags about any Xavi links

 

[Abizzz]

Oh look, yet another example of a new manager making an instant impact.

He will have won stuff and be sacked again while other mangers still need time.

 

[bosniamanutd]

why we always have a manager who needs time to make good results? by time i mean years..

 

[bosnian_red]

His current performance with the almost exact same squad is giving me huge red flags about any Xavi links

Xavi was decent with Barca. But also very clearly, not like flick. Flick has Barca playing in his own way which is different to their usual style but it's absolutely brilliant to watch. Way more direct, way more excitement. Having this sort of impact on a team who has been extremely obsessive about possession for decades to know be a direct attacking team to this level is incredible coaching really.

Also what he's done with Raphinha is crazy

 

[arthurka]

Flick's Bayern is the best Bayern in the last 20 + years.. Barcelona fans are in for a treat if this man is left cooking...

Jupp Heynckes says hi..
Back to Hansi he has done some magic on their defensive end as well. Their offside trap is just a weapon. They caught their opponents offside more then X2 the next team of the all the teams in the biggest leagues in Europe. Brilliant work.

 

[Fallon d'Floor]

International tournament, flukes can happen basically. They missed a stupid amount of chances vs Japan and just threw that game away with a Neuer clanger if I remember, had an excellent game against Spain that they drew and then Spain didn't care about their 3rd game and basically threw it away which eliminated Germany.

A coach can only do so much, but ultimately especially in international tournaments, you need the luck.

It's not just The WC though, look at Flick's last dozen games as Germany manager.

Germany 1-4 Japan
Germany 0-2 Colombia
Poland 1-0 Germany
Germany 3-3 Ukraine
Germany 2-0 Peru
Costa Rica 2-4 Germany
Spain 1-1 Germany
Germany 1-2 Japan
Oman 0-1 Germany
England 3-3 Germany
Germany 0-1 Hungary

Just 3 wins. Against Peru, Costa Rica and Oman.

 

[PepG]

Jupp Heynckes says hi..
Back to Hansi he has done some magic on their defensive end as well. Their offside trap is just a weapon. They caught their opponents offside more then X2 the next team of the all the teams in the biggest leagues in Europe. Brilliant work.

Nope, Flick's Bayern was miles better than the treble winning Bayern. They were more ruthless and more dominant. Bayern in 2013 was a team hungry to prove the world wrong because of the 2012 fiasco.. Bayern in 2020 was just a killing machine..

 

[horsechoker]

His first real test will be the likes of City or Liverpool in the latter stages of the champions league

 

[Fallon d'Floor]

Nope, Flick's Bayern was miles better than the treble winning Bayern. They were more ruthless and more dominant. Bayern in 2013 was a team hungry to prove the world wrong because of the 2012 fiasco.. Bayern in 2020 was just a killing machine..

You have to take Covid into consideration. The CL knockout was 1 leg ties, no fans for certain games, etc. Plus, Flick got lockdown to prepare the team physically for the way he wanted to play. A lot of the players bulked up like crazy.

I still think that 12/13 Bayern is the best iteration of Bayern this century. Robbery.

 

[arthurka]

Nope, Flick's Bayern was miles better than the treble winning Bayern. They were more ruthless and more dominant. Bayern in 2013 was a team hungry to prove the world wrong because of the 2012 fiasco.. Bayern in 2020 was just a killing machine..

I can't agree with that but that's ok people don't have to agree on all things, that's the beauty of life. That team battled some top teams, won everything during prime Barcelona era. They beat Arsenal, Juve and Barca on the way to the final and Klopps Dortmund in the final. Hell they took Barca apart 7-0 in two matches. Heynckes was a man on a mission coming into that season.

 

[RedC]

Oh look, yet another example of a new manager making an instant impact.

Barcelona came 2nd last season with 85 points.

 

[Theonas]

I think what people are forgetting here is that Flick is working with kids from an academy that already prepares players tactically to be suited to what he is trying to do. I think he is a great manager and I like him but it would be foolish to expect him to just be able to replicate what he is doing anywhere else. At Bayern he was also working with players who had the tactical tutelage of Heynckes and Pep. Our fans complain that other managers can have an instant impact are ignoring the starting point which is already at a certain tactical level at a club like Barcelona which is maybe the best academy in the world from a tactical and technical stand point. This is not defending Ten Hag at all as I think that after three years, what he is delivering is really unacceptable but I just don't think Flick would be able to deliver the same thing at a club like ours.

 

[Redstain]

That was a stupid doubt considering his body of work before the Premier League.

Flick's work that Bayern season was remarkable. He took over at the start of the season and turned them into a machine. That is miles better than anything ETH achieved.

That Bayern team was one of the greatest teams I've seen in the modern era of football because they were a jack of all trades, could press, play high intensity and rip teams apart in possession.

I think taking the Germany job made his stock go down if we use recency bias but this is why the hierarchy need to produce when assessing managerial candidates.

It reflects very poorly on INEOS the amount of options that were available in the summer especially if Erik is sacked mid season.

 

[Kwabs]

could say the same about Ole tbf. Let’s see if it’s more than a new manager bounce.

Comparing what has happened to Barca with Ole's start at United is, uh, interesting.....

I'll just say that Flick has a bit more credit in the bank as a manager.

 

[2 man midfield]

Comparing what has happened to Barca with Ole's start at United is, uh, interesting.....

I'll just say that Flick has a bit more credit in the bank as a manager.

Why is it? He said you don’t need new signings to immediately come in and get results. He took the same players that had gotten Jose sacked, and immediately won 11 out of 14 games or whatever it was.

 

[Kwabs]

Why is it? He said you don’t need new signings to immediately come in and get results. He took the same players that had gotten Jose sacked, and immediately won 11 out of 14 games or whatever it was.

Because the way this Barca team is playing football is not the way that United team was playing football. Also, Flick didn't take over midway through a season as a caretaker with 'good vibes', he's had time to implement his methods and the team is following that blueprint.

 

[simonhch]

People underestimated what Ole did here. He’s still the only manager post Fergie to get consecutive top 4 finishes, finishing 3rd and 2nd in back to back seasons. Things only went off the rails after the summer in which we brought in Ronaldo, Varane and Sancho. Had we just brought in Varane and Sancho, I think we’d have had a good season, but the change in playing style and toxicity brought by the Ronaldo singing, swung everything off track. Solksjaer wasn’t strong enough to deal with Ronaldo, which was a huge negative against him; nevertheless, outside of that he had us playing the best football post Fergie and had us on a steady upwards trajectory.

We never should have signed Ronaldo, it pretty much ruined his entire tenure. People jibed him with the whole PE teacher bollocks, when he showed ten times the tactical and attacking acumen that Ten Hag has done. This club is sadly littered with a history of terrible decisions. Just like the decision to keep Ten Hag in the summer was atrocious.

We finally have the executive team to do something meaningful and take this club back to the top, but that isn’t going to happen until we get a proper manager in place. Every week Ten Hag stays is a waste of everyone’s time. I am broadly supportive of Ineos, I don’t expect everything to be perfect. But they’ve made their first big mistake in keeping Ten Hag. Let’s see how they respond to it. It’s made all the more glaring of an error when the likes of Flick were available in the summer.

 

[2 man midfield]

Because the way this Barca team is playing football is not the way that United team was playing football. Also, Flick didn't take over midway through a season as a caretaker with 'good vibes', he's had time to implement his methods and the team is following that blueprint.

So? None of that has anything to do with what I said

 

[Kwabs]

So? None of that has anything to do with what I said

Dude, it's just an odd comparison, that's all. Flick is a proven top manager, Germany disaster notwithstanding. Ole never was and his good start at United was due to 'positive vibes' after the Mourinho morgue. Not due to actually knowing what he was doing.

 

[2 man midfield]

Dude, it's just an odd comparison, that's all. Flick is a proven top manager, Germany disaster notwithstanding. Ole never was and his good start at United was due to 'positive vibes' after the Mourinho morgue. Not due to actually knowing what he was doing.

I never claimed otherwise. When did I say that Ole was a coach on par with Flick?

 

[Josep Dowling]

Even in a bad season Barcelona can comfortably finish 3rd and still get Champions League.

United don’t have that luxury in the Premier League. There was the top 6 but with Villa and Newcastle it’s now looking like 8 teams fighting for 4 CL places.

Our lack of regular CL qualification is starting to hurt us, especially on the budget for transfers.

 

[OverratedOpinion]

Even in a bad season Barcelona can comfortably finish 3rd and still get Champions League.

United don’t have that luxury in the Premier League. There was the top 6 but with Villa and Newcastle it’s now looking like 8 teams fighting for 4 CL places.

Our lack of regular CL qualification is starting to hurt us, especially on the budget for transfers.

We just spent another 250m

Following 200 odd for each of the 2 seasons prior.