Marcus Rashford not certain to start but “a good option”, Flick says
Barcelona head coach Hansi Flick believes his side have the quality to stand toe-to-toe and compete against Premier League teams despite the financial strength of the English top-flight.
The Spanish champions face Newcastle at St James’ Park on Tuesday for the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie, with a place in the quarter-finals on the line ahead of the return match at Camp Nou on 18 March.
Newcastle are one of six English clubs still in the competition. No other European league has up to that number. Barcelona could yet face only English teams from here to the final.
Flick’s side have already faced Eddie Howe’s team once this season, edging a 2-1 win in September during the league phase of the tournament. But the manager expects a far tougher challenge this time in the knockout stages.
Despite the financial gulf between Premier League clubs and their European rivals, Flick insists Barcelona remain capable of competing with the very best.
“The Premier League is a great league, for me the best in the world,” Flick said. “They have strong teams and also a lot of money, to hopefully make the right decisions. That’s why you see there are six teams in this round.
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“For me, we are strong as well, not only Newcastle or Manchester City or Arsenal or Tottenham or the others. We have huge quality, we have to continue our way, our style, how we want to play.
“We want to play like Barca, also in the Champions League. Our supporters are proud about the way we play football. This is what we want to show tomorrow.”
Newcastle enter the match with mixed domestic form. They have lost three of their last five league fixtures and slipped to 12th in the table, while Manchester City eliminated them from the FA Cup at the weekend.
However, Flick, whose own side have won four on the bounce after losing two in a row before that, is wary of reading too much into those results, especially when the meeting is on the European stage.
“The Champions League is different,” Flick said. “Everyone in this stage wants to show their best. We will find here a fantastic atmosphere. The fans will push them on, they will press high, man to man, and play an intense game.
“We have to play brave out from the back. It will not be easy. We have to find solutions. It’s a team in transition with very fast, good, outstanding players. We have to handle and manage it.”
Barcelona head into the tie dealing with several injury concerns. Frenkie de Jong, Jules Kounde, Alejandro Balde, Andreas Christensen and Gavi are all unavailable, though midfielder Marc Bernal has recovered from illness and is in contention.
Marcus Rashford could also feature after returning to the starting lineup in Saturday’s narrow win over Athletic Club. The forward scored both goals when Barcelona defeated Newcastle earlier in the campaign.
“Marcus was injured, he was out some days, some games,” Flick said. “Now he is back. We will see. I have not decided yet. But he’s a good option.”
