FC Barcelona has often had issues with referees in La Liga over the last few seasons. However, despite these problems, the club has been meddled in the nasty Negreira business as well. Despite these allegations, however, it remains ironic that Barcelona often faces negative consequences of poor decision-making from the referees.
Xavi Hernandez was rather outspoken about this whole issue concerning the decisions made by the La Liga officials, and his words often landed him in trouble as well. However, so far at least, Hansi Flick seems to have avoided the same problems and continues to help his players to do the same as well.
Following the recent 4-1 victory over Girona, a game in which Barcelona thoroughly outclassed their Catalan opponents, the Blaugrana coach was even asked to comment about his experience with the La Liga referees and the influence of VAR on decisions, as broadcasted on the La Liga youtube channel. His response, rather unsurprisingly, was a positive one:
“The referees are good. I only focus on my team. We have the Video Assistant Referee (VAR). If something happens, he’s there to say, ‘Hey, come on, look at this,’ and if something is wrong, they will help him.”
“I’m not a coach who always looks for excuses because the referees have a tough job, and I think they’re doing great. For the last five matches, I have nothing but positive things to say.”
Unlike Xavi, it seems that Hansi Flick is hoping to keep a positive image in front of these officials. This may or may not help him in the future, but it is certainly an approach quite different from the one that was taken by his predecessor in the previous seasons.
In terms of pure footballing quality and results, Hansi Flick’s Barcelona has been unstoppable on the field as well. With five wins out of five games, and the most amount of goals scored in the league as well, it is clear to see the ultra-attacking philosophy that the former Bayern Munich coach continues to inject into this new-look Barcelona team.
