Barcelona boss Hansi Flick backs Deco in striker search and praises Rodri’s influence

Hansi Flick says he has complete faith in Barcelona sporting director Deco to sign a new striker, while praising Rodri’s ability to bring control, experience and leadership to the Catalan club’s midfield.

Flick was speaking after Barcelona ended their pre-season with a 2-1 victory over Al Ahly in the Joan Gamper Trophy on Wednesday evening. The German manager also outlined the qualities Rodri could offer, highlighting the Spain midfielder’s game management and decision-making.

“I think Rodri showed at the World Cup that he is the best player… and he is good at dealing with the ball with both feet,” said Flick.

The Barcelona manager believes Rodri is capable of adjusting the tempo of a match according to the demands of the situation.

“He is a player who can make decisions, he can decide when to play faster or slower. That is what we want, a player like him, with experience. He is a leader on the pitch and in the dressing room,” Flick added.

Barcelona are still working on bringing in a new forward during the summer transfer window. Flick made clear that he is relying on Deco to complete the deal.

“We are looking for this player, the striker. Deco is doing a great job and I trust him blindly,” said the former Germany manager.

Flick also acknowledged that the new season will present significant challenges, with Barcelona’s preparations disrupted by the late arrival of several members of the squad.

“This year will not be easy. The preparation period was not easy because many players arrived only a week ago. We have to use all these matches we have to manage the minutes and get the players to the highest level possible,” he said.

Barcelona begin their La Liga campaign on Sunday away to Elche at Manuel Martinez Valero. The match is part of the second round of fixtures, with Barcelona’s opening game postponed because several of their players were involved in the later stages of the World Cup.

Flick expects a difficult test against Elche, despite his confidence in the quality of his own squad.

“I think we have difficult matches ahead of us. Elche have played very good football recently. But we have quality and we have a great team. We have to manage that, because I think the international break did not make things easy for us. But we are heading directly into the season and we have very good and positive feelings,” he said.

Barcelona completed their preparations with victory over Al Ahly after Hamza Abdelkarim gave the Egyptian side the lead. Raphinha levelled from the penalty spot before Ahmed Sayed Zizo scored Al Ahly’s only goal to reduce the deficit.

The result brought Barcelona’s pre-season to a close as Flick prepares his squad for the start of their league campaign. His immediate priorities are managing the workload of players who joined training late and maintaining the progress made during the club’s limited preparation period.