FC Barcelona thrashed local city rivals Espanyol 3-1 in the Catalan derby. Despite the obvious off-field tensions between the two clubs, there was a gulf of class on the pitch and Hansi Flick’s men seemed miles clear, especially in the first half.
Hansi Flick named a strong XI for Barcelona against Espanyol with Hector Fort for Jules Kounde being the only rotational change. What this meant though was that the German coach named 7 La Masia graduates in his playing XI against the Catalan rivals.
Inaki Pena, Hector Fort, Pau Cubarsi, Alejandro Balde, Marc Casado, Lamine Yamal, and Dani Olmo have all come through the youth ranks of the club through the famed La Masia academy. Off the bench, Gavi, Fermin Lopez, and Ansu Fati also made an appearance.
Thus, of the 16 players that Flick used against Espanyol, 10 came through the academy with the exceptions being Inigo Martinez, Pedri, Raphinha, Robert Lewandowski, Frenkie de Jong, and Jules Kounde.
Back during Tito Vilanova’s time at the club, he fielded a starting XI against Levante made up entirely of La Masia graduates, with the sole exception of Dani Alves.
Dani Alves was the only non-homegrown player in the starting line-up that day. However, after he sustained an injury in the 15th minute, Martin Montoya came on as his replacement, completing the historic all-homegrown lineup.
Now a report from SPORT claims that Hansi Flick fielding an entire XI of La Masia graduates is inching closer and is no longer just a distant possibility.
For instance, in last night’s game, this could have been achieved if the German coach had brought on Sergi Dominguez for Inigo, Gavi for Pedri, Fermin Lopez for Raphinha, and Ansu Fati for Robert Lewandowski.
Hansi Flick has shown immense trust in La Masia during his short tenure as Barcelona coach and it won’t be a surprise if he does the above-mentioned feat in some game during his tenure. It is also a testament to the quality of talent coming through the academy.
It would be an incredible moment if Flick were to replicate Vilanova’s feat in a future game. However, he is unlikely to plan for it, so let’s wait and see if it happens organically sometime soon.
