Barcelona manager Hansi Flick has responded to his star player Lamine Yamal’s frustration at being substituted off in the victory over Levante. The Blaugrana returned to the summit of the LaLiga standings with a 3-0 win against Levante on Sunday, February 22.
Yamal seemed visibly frustrated when he was taken off for Roony Bardghji in the 88th minute. The Catalan giants already established a 3-0 lead at the point and looked pretty much certain to take all three points.
However, Yamal looked irritated with the substitution and shook his head as he took his seat. Following the game, Hansi Flick was asked to comment on the youngster’s reaction and the German downplayed the incident.
Flick insisted that he was happy to see Yamal’s mentality of always looking to score and assist. He also reminded that the Spaniard is only 18 years of age and his legs needs to be protected. The Barcelona manager said, as quoted by The National:
“I love that he is disappointed. It shows his mentality. He always wants to score, to assist, to help the team. That is good. That is what we want from our players.”
He added:
“He is 18 years old. We have to take care of him. He plays a lot of minutes and today the game was under control. It was the right moment to give him some rest.”
Marc Bernal, Frenkie de Jong and Fermin Lopez scored for the Blaugrana as they leapfrogged ahead of Real Madrid at the top of the table. Los Blancos suffered a 2-1 loss against Osasuna and are now one point behind their arch rivals.
Yamal has been excellent for Barcelona this season scoring 15 goals and producing 14 assists in 33 appearances across competitions. He provided the assist for Barca’s third goal against Levante, scored by Fermin Lopez.
Manchester United eyeing a €40m bid for Barcelona defender in the summer: Reports
Manchester United have reportedly emerged as big admirers of Barcelona left-back Alejandro Balde. As claimed by Mundo Deportivo, Barca view Balde as an important player but not untouchable.
The Catalan giants would reportedly sell Balde if they receive the right offer and Manchester United have already registered their interest. The Red Devils are looking for a long-term successor to Luke Shaw who has entered the final 18 months of his deal.
The Premier League giants are reportedly ready to offer Barcelona €40 million for Balde’s services in the summer. Aged only 22, Balde is mostly known for his attacking forays, having scored thrice and provided 21 assists in 158 games for Barca till date.
Edited by Snehanjan Banerjee