In the 19th round of La Liga, Barcelona welcomed Atletico Madrid at home. Pedri opened the scoring for Blaugrana in the 30th minute, but they collapsed in the second half. De Paul and Sorloth scored two goals to help Atletico Madrid win 2-1.
With this victory, Atletico Madrid has successfully taken the top spot in La Liga with 41 points. Meanwhile, Barcelona (38 points) will even lose the second place, if Real Madrid (37 points) wins the match against Sevilla.
In the match against Atletico Madrid, coach Hansi Flick did not appear due to a touchline ban. He was still satisfied with the way his Barcelona players played, according to Tribal Football: “I think we played a great game. In the first half, we had chances. I am very proud.
But I'm sad about the result. The score shows that Atletico are an experienced team. I think Barcelona's style is still great. I'm sad. But I'm happy for Pedri, for Gavi... and we'll be back next season for sure."
Barcelona have been in a strange slump lately. They have won just one of their seven La Liga games, losing four of them. However, the nearly one-month winter break will be a golden time for Hansi Flick and his players to improve.
“Change has to come,” he added. “I appreciate the way we play. But we have to play smarter and learn from our mistakes. Everyone can see the quality of Barcelona. Losing nine points is not normal and we need to work harder.”
