The upcoming clash for FC Barcelona will be their first one in La Liga following the recent international break. Following a break from club football that fortunately saw no players from La Blaugrana injured, the club now faces a familiar opponent. For their next encounter, Barcelona will be looking to face Michel’s Girona.
After having lost two games to their fellow Catalan club last season, Barcelona will want to make sure they set the record straight with Girona this season. However, Michel’s side will be just as competitive and the coach made this clear in his latest press conference ahead of the game.
However, it was not just his own team that he ended up praising. As highlighted by Mundo Deportivo, the Girona coach made sure to acknowledge certain stars from Barcelona as well and sent some special words for 17-year-old La Masia wonderkid Lamine Yamal:
“Lamine is the most decisive player in LaLiga in one-on-one situations because his decision-making is top-tier for a 17-year-old player. He does everything very well and is ahead of everyone in that regard.”
The €120 million-rated Barcelona star remains one of La Liga’s finest, and even managed to win the Under-23 Player of the Month award for August 2024 as well. However, he was not the only player from Hansi Flick’s team that Michel made a comment about:
“Raphinha is also in great form with his verticality, which adds depth to the team, and there’s not much need to talk about Lewandowski.”
Even in regards to the collective team that is currently playing under Hansi Flick, Michel was quick to talk about his own observations about his upcoming opponents, complimenting their verticality and hunger:
“They are very vertical and perform well, not just in attack but also in quickly recovering the ball and their individual quality.”
Ultimately, the battle between the two Catalan sides will be won based on both tactics and individual brilliance. Currently, Barcelona will be hoping to maintain their perfect record, but doing so will need them to overcome a Girona side that has given them a lot of troubles lately.
