The lesson Hansi Flick needs to learn from last season as Barcelona prepare for El Clasico

It was a scintillating attacking display from two of the best sides on the continent and some incredible goals were scored in both halves.

Both teams endured spells during the game where the momentum swung against them and ultimately, the La Liga champions fell short on the night.

A lot can be said about Barcelona’s defensive frailties and wastefulness in front of goal but the underlying issue in their performance, and indeed in the format, is that Hansi Flick ultimately had to prioritise his players’ fitness ahead of El Clásico.

The Catalans can afford to lose one of their eight Champions League fixtures, last season they won only two of their opening five games and still finished in the top eight. But the opportunity to go nine points clear of their bitter rivals and become the first team in Spanish top-flight history to have a perfect record after the first ten matchdays is one that should not be wasted.

But perhaps even more crucially, the German cannot allow last season’s injury fiasco to repeat itself. It is why, in his post-match press conference, he admitted that his choice not to start Rodri and to substitute Pedri and Raphinha on the hour mark were in fact, made with the weekend’s encounter in mind. And who can blame him?

Rodri suffered an ACL injury two years ago and last season his playing time accounted for less than 45% of the available Premier League minutes last season.

Since making his first start for the Blaugrana at the Mestalla on matchday four, Rodri has started every single game that has followed. In Frenkie de Jong’s absence, he has been able to add another dimension to Flick’s midfield and has freed Pedri from the burden of having to start the team’s attacks from deep. The latter is perhaps the key to unlocking the full potential of this Barça side.

The 25-year-old suffered three different injuries last season and he was thrown in the deep end once he came back from his spell on the sidelines in February. It was evident that he was playing below his usual level, most notably demonstrated in the two quarter-final ties against Atlético Madrid.

A local derby against Espanyol at home was sandwiched between the two ties, in which Pedri started and played the full 90 minutes. Flick felt that with Frenkie and Marc Bernal injured, it would have been remiss to rest him, even with the second leg vs Atleti looming over.

At the time, Barcelona went into that game six points clear, with their title rivals having already played the day prior. Even if they had dropped points on that day, they still would have had a healthy lead going into the final seven games.

During that same period Raphinha had picked up an injury over the international break and seemed like he would have also missed the potential CL semi in May had his team gone that far.

The Brazilian also missed a number of big games last season due to injury, and his absence meant that his teammates were unable to carry out his relentless pressing from the front with the same efficiency.

The collective struggled as a result, with opposition midfielders having time and space on the ball to pick out runners and Barça defenders constantly playing catch-up.

In Pedri’s absence, Dani Olmo played as the side’s designated number 8 due to his exquisite technique and being able to play in tight spaces. But he simply is unable to replicate Pedri’s defensive work and generate the same number of turnovers, leading to the collapse of his side’s defensive structure.

The signings of Rodri, Anthony Gordon and Karim Adeyemi were all made, among other reasons, to provide greater squad depth. The latter two are renowned for their running power, off-the-ball movement and versatility, making them worthy of covering for Raphinha when needed.

Before the September break, Raphinha had scored 14 goals in all competitions and assisted a further 3, making him by far the most in-form forward in Europe.

At the Parc des Princes, however, he only showed glimpses of his quality due to a lack of match sharpness since he had not started since picking up a knock whilst on international duty.

At the very least, though he did not walk off the pitch with an injury, like Ousmane Dembele and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and he should be fit and firing to face Real Madrid.

As for Rodri, a lot of online discourse hinted at the fact that Frenkie’s time at the Camp Nou may be drawing to a close. The Dutchman came back from the World Cup with an injury and has only recently regained match fitness.

Rodri and Pedri will need to be rested whilst Gavi and Bernal are both injury-prone; De Jong is likely to get an opportunity sooner or later.

Given that his best version came to life in Catalunya under Hansi Fick, it could even be possible for Rodri, Pedri and Frenkie to start together.

Alternatively, both Cadena SER and Diario Sport have said that the German manager is considering the possibility of deploying him as a centre-back, an area where the Spanish champions are noticeably thin in and a role which he featured in the past during Ronald Koeman’s tenure.

Managing Barcelona in the 2020s has become more challenging than it used to be, with managers needing to get creative to navigate the club’s precarious financial situation.

It is why the club is unable to assemble a squad as stacked as PSG’s and it is also why a win on Sunday is so crucial.

It could mean that by the business end of the season, Flick’s well-oiled machine won’t have run out of steam from competing on domestic fronts.