Hansi Flick was officially introduced as FC Barcelona’s manager earlier today in front of the media at the club’s headquarters, accompanied by Joan Laporta.
After being welcomed by the Barça head, the German strategist seized the floor and opened up about how his appointment came to be, revealing:
“I want to express my happiness. We had supper right away before signing my contract, and the president gave me a letter translated into German in which there was something said that made me feel like it is an amazing club, extremely large, and everyone helps and respects one other.”
After taking charge of the team for a couple of weeks in pre-season, Flick provided an appraisal of what he has seen at the club thus far, saying:
“I’m quite pleased with the first couple weeks. We have a large number of players from La Masia, and I am appreciative for the work done there with these individuals. It’s extremely good; we had a terrific time, and the first thing I noticed was the quality and intensity,” he said.
“We work really hard in training, and we have fantastic young players who want to give everything. I can sense it from the board, staff, and coaches… The coaching staff is new, and the team has made significant efforts.
You must establish this environment for the athletes in order to develop and advance their careers. And that’s where I’m going to focus,” he said.
After his address, Flick took questions from the media and discussed a variety of topics, including his ambitions for the team, transfer targets, and players at his disposal, among others.
tactics and squad
One of the most hotly debated topics has been the potential shift in Barcelona’s playing style with Flick in charge, however the German has indicated that his ideals are very similar to those of Barça, saying:
“I’m not far from the notion that Barça has played before, when they were successful under Cruyff or Pep. My vision is to have an energetic team on the field who want to demonstrate what they can do with and without the ball.
“They may pick what they want to accomplish; initiative is essential. It doesn’t matter if we play 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1; what I want is for us to play a beautiful, technical, and good game, and for everyone watching.