Hansi Flick credits Barcelona mentality after “crazy” Champions League victory over Benfica

Barcelona have become one of two teams (alongside Liverpool) to automatically qualify for the last 16 of the Champions League, and they did so by winning their sixth match in a row in the competition. However, this victory at Benfica was far from straightforward, with three goals in 20 minutes seeing the Catalans come back from 4-2 to take the game with a 5-4 scoreline.

Hansi Flick had previously overseen a 10-goal match at the Estadio da Luz as his Bayern Munich infamously defeated Barcelona 8-2 in 2020, and now he has managed a nine-goal victory at the same stadium. Speaking to Movistar+ (via AS Diary), he reflected on the win in Lisbon, while crediting the mindset that his players played with during the 96 minutes.

“It was a crazy game. The best thing has been the mentality. This is football. I don’t think I have ever experienced a comeback like this. They were very good in transitions and they have marked us well. They forced us to defend very deep, as we were not well positioned. The substitutions helped us a lot.”

The match had plenty of drama, but also lots of errors. Wojciech Szczesny was at the heart of them in the first half, as he gifted Benfica their second goal of the evening before giving away a penalty for Vangelis Pavlidis to net his hat-trick. It was the Pole’s first Champions League appearance for Barcelona, but Flick defended his decision to start the veteran ahead of Inaki Pena.

“Which player doesn’t make mistakes? We all make them. We win and lose together. I liked what I saw (from him) in the second half.”

Barcelona host Atalanta in their final league phase fixture next midweek, and although they are already assured of finishing inside the top eight, Flick will want his side to win that match to ensure a perfect end to this stage of the Champions League.