FC Barcelona have undoubtedly struggled a lot with their physical preparations in recent seasons. La Blaugrana, especially in their latest campaigns, have been especially lacklustre when it comes to keeping up with their opponents in terms of fitness. However, with Hansi Flick now at Barcelona, things were expected to change.
The German coach is renowned for improving his teams on a physical level and that is something that Barcelona had hoped he would be able to provide to the Catalan club as well. So far, it looks like that is exactly what the former Bayern Munich coach has injected into Barcelona.
Even for Pedri, Barça’s former Golden boy and current number ‘8’, the impact that Hansi Flick has had on the team is clear to see, as highlighted by Mundo Deportivo. Primarily, the Barcelona star has revealed that the training itself is much more challenging than before:
“At the club, we work a lot harder than before. I think the new fitness coaches are doing us a lot of good. We work really hard, and it shows in the game. The team doesn’t drop off after the 70th or 80th minute; instead, it maintains its physical level.”
Further providing details regarding the training exercises, the Barcelona midfielder highlighted the main kind of routine that the players follow under the coaches now:
“It’s true that we arrived later, but those who were here for pre-season went through a lot of intense training. A lot of strength work and physical exercises. When we arrived, we went through a final push until the games started. Now with the competition, it’s different.“
Despite his own injury issues in recent seasons, Pedri now seems much more refined and looks to be at his best level yet again, and even the player himself stated that he feels much more positive now and that the new Barcelona coach has had a direct impact on this feeling:
“Physically, I can feel that I’m better able to do different things. Flick gives me the confidence to play without pressure.”
Barcelona will unfortunately have to wait a little before Pedri can feature for the club again, however. Along with Lamine Yamal, Ferran Torres, and Dani Olmo, he is currently on international duty with Spain. Fermin Lopez also left to star for the Under-21 side, but he has already succumbed to an unfortunate injury.
