Hansi Flick deployed defender Eric Garcia in the Clásico against Real Madrid. Toni Kroos questions this decision.
Toni Kroos was surprised by a personnel decision from Hansi Flick in the Clásico. The former Real Madrid midfielder questioned the Barcelona coach’s lineup in the Clásico. Kroos particularly didn’t understand the selection in central defense after the 2:1 victory of the Royals.
There, Flick, who was serving a suspension and was represented on the sidelines by assistant coach Marcus Sorg, opted for Pau Cubarsi and Eric Garcia. Kroos would definitely not have seen the latter in the starting lineup.
Eric Garcia was allowed to play from the start in the Clásico
Kroos doesn’t understand Flick
“But in central defense, I don’t understand that a Garcia plays, who is a tick better football-wise than Araújo. But he (Araújo, editor’s note) brings the physicality to chase after someone even more – especially when you’re positioned so high. He would have been predestined for the playing style and the opponent,” said Kroos in his podcast Simply luppen .
The Real legend added: “When you have Mbappé and Vinícius, you need someone who can match the pace. Araújo can do that. That surprised me.” Indeed, Barcelona had major problems with Real’s pace and looked anything but secure at the back.
Barcelona departure hardly discussed
In any case, Kroos sees definite problems in Barcelona’s defensive center – and links these with a departure that has hardly been discussed publicly.
In August, Inigo Martinez left FC Barcelona and has since been a teammate of Cristiano Ronaldo and Sadio Mané at Al-Nassr. Last season, the 34-year-old was part of the regular squad under Flick.
“They’re really missing him”
“I already mentioned back then how important I thought Inigo Martinez was. Of all the central defenders at Barcelona last year, he had the best build-up play. He wasn’t the fastest, but a great tackler and had strong build-up play. Against Real, there were situations where they missed this player when Real applied pressure. He wasn’t replaced by a new one and they’re really missing him,” said Kroos.
At the same time, the legend also defended Barcelona for their less than glorious performance in the Clásico: “To be fair, it must be said that Barcelona was significantly weakened – starting with the goalkeeper and ending with the coach.” Kroos also cited the absences of Raphinha, Dani Olmo, and Robert Lewandowski.