Flick: "I'm not satisfied, we lacked freshness"

Flick blamed lack of freshness after Barcelona's 1-2 Clásico loss to Real Madrid, their second defeat in a week following a 4-2 Champions League loss to PSG.

Barcelona suffered a 1-2 defeat to Real Madrid in the Clásico, capping a difficult week after losing 4-2 to Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League on Tuesday. Manager Hansi Flick addressed his players in the dressing room before speaking to the media, citing a lack of freshness as the key factor in the loss.

Flick told DAZN: "I'm not satisfied. Today we saw we're not fresh at 100 percent. Normally we would have been fresher. In the second half we played well and Madrid only had two chances to score the second goal. We controlled the match and scored 1-1. At the end, we pressed and they made a transition where they scored. It's not good for us, but we have to accept it. Defeats are also part of football."

The Barcelona manager emphasized the need for recovery, noting this is their first league loss in ten matches. "We're not playing at our best level and it has to do with freshness. We have a week until the next match to prepare. We need to recover energy in the team," Flick said, adding that players need to disconnect after an intense week. Barcelona remain league leaders and will host Alavés at the Spotify Camp Nou next.