FC Barcelona have truly announced themselves as a force to be reckoned with following their latest victory. This time around, the Catalan giants did not just humiliate any other team that they would normally be expected to dominate. Instead, it was Bayern Munich of all teams that faced the wrath of Barcelona.
In the UEFA Champions League, against a very familiar foe, La Blaugrana prevailed in spectacular fashion as they thrashed Bayern in a 4-1 victory at the Montjuic Stadium. However, beyond just a collective masterclass from Hansi Flick’s team, a lot of individuals stepped up as well.
While most of the spotlight will understandably go towards Raphinha, given that the Barcelona captain was the hero of the hour with his superb hattrick, there is another player who completely disrupted Bayern Munich’s advances again and again. This particular player, one who was even likened to Joshua Kimmich of Bayern, made a huge difference as well.
It is none other than 21-year-old Marc Casado, a player grown and developed within the Barcelona youth system and who is now one of the guarantees of the first team. As highlighted by MARCA, the Spaniard has now even managed to completely make Barça forget about their initial desire to get Joshua Kimmich in the first place.
That is because, in the game against Bayern and Kimmich himself, Casado prevailed as the victor in most duels that he contested. From his elite passing accuracy to his almost impenetrable defensive contributions at times, the former Barcelona Atletic captain proved exactly why Hansi Flick’s decision to not bring in a new defensive midfielder was justified.
Instead, the faith that Flick retains in La Masia continues to shine through. Even when Marc Bernal initially got injured, Casado wasted no time in becoming the man that Hansi Flick could rely on to stabilize his team’s midfield and become the player who acts as the backbone of the entire playing team.
With Casado prevailing over both Kimmich and the Bavarian opponents that Barça just recently took care of, the youngster continues to show why he is such a special talent. Despite not having the meteoric rise that the likes of Lamine Yamal or Pau Cubarsi enjoyed, Casado remains a player for the future and one who has solved the defensive midfielder issue all by himself.
