Hansi Flick takes ‘blame’ as Osasuna halt Barcelona’s perfect La Liga start
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Osasuna celebrating Abel Bretones' goal in the 4-2 La Liga win over Barcelona at Estadio El Sadar on Sept 28.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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BARCELONA – Osasuna shattered La Liga leaders Barcelona’s perfect start to the season with an emphatic 4-2 victory on Sept 28 and their coach Hansi Flick took the blame.
The Catalan side won all seven of their opening fixtures but Flick’s heavily rotated side came badly undone in Pamplona as Ante Budimir bagged a brace, scoring either side of Bryan Zaragoza’s strike.
Pau Victor had given Barca a lifeline to pull them back into the game before Budimir netted his second from the penalty spot.
Abel Bretones added a sensational fourth from the edge of the box, before substitute Lamine Yamal pulled one back with a fine effort of his own.
Victory would have matched Barcelona’s best-ever start to a league campaign with eight consecutive wins, but they were not able to build on their four-point lead over second-placed Real Madrid.
The Spanish champions visit Atletico Madrid, third, in a derby clash on Sept 29. The match took place after press time.
“In the first half, we made a lot of mistakes, it’s not normal we play like this – we had a lot of changes in the team and this is maybe one reason for that,” Flick said.
“I think it was necessary. We had so many matches, a lot of players had so many minutes. I have to take care about that. This is my responsibility.
“If you want to blame someone for this defeat, then take me.”
Ahead of a Champions League match against Young Boys on Oct 1, Flick felt he had to shuffle his pack, especially after Barca lost at Monaco in their European opener.
Missing several key players through injury, the German handed starts to inexperienced defenders Gerard Martin and Sergi Dominguez as well as Pablo Torre in midfield and Victor in attack.
Flick also rested Spain’s Euro 2024 starlet Yamal and Brazilian winger Raphinha, among other regulars.
“It’s normal there are rotations, there are a lot of games. It’s not an excuse,” Barcelona midfielder Pedri told Movistar.
“In the second half, we deserved a bit more but we let in goals when we were at our best.”
Osasuna rose to sixth and goalscorer Zaragoza said his team had been determined to beat the leaders.
“We knew Barca were an incredible team. They had won everything and we knew we had to get stuck into it, and that’s how we went out there. It’s a special game and really nice to play in,” explained the winger, who is on loan from Bayern Munich.
Earlier, Real Sociedad defeated Valencia 3-0 and Getafe won their first game of the season with a 2-0 home success over Alaves. Rayo Vallecano and Leganes drew 1-1. AFP
