Barcelona’s season has hit a critical rough patch following two consecutive demoralising defeats within the span of just five days.
Hansi Flick’s side suffered a heavy 4-0 loss to Atletico Madrid in the Copa del Rey semi-finals, followed closely by a painful 2-1 defeat against Michel’s Girona in La Liga.
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Beyond the serious refereeing errors that marred the Girona clash, these setbacks have glaringly exposed the team’s lack of a reliable defensive system, particularly concerning their vulnerable high line.
Flick’s struggle in finding the right combination
As reported by Mundo Deportivo, coach Hansi Flick has desperately tried every possible approach to stabilise the backline, making frequent tactical and technical tweaks without finding a definitive solution.
Across 38 official matches this season, Flick has deployed an astonishing 16 different defensive formations. Interestingly, he has used the exact same formation 11 times without ever repeating it consecutively.
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Amidst this heavy rotation, the combination of Jules Kounde, Pau Cubarsi and Eric Garcia, and Alejandro Balde has emerged as the most frequently used backline.
Flick has struggled to find the right combination this season. (Photo by Juan Manuel Serrano Arce/Getty Images)
This specific quartet has started together 12 times across all competitions, including eight appearances in the league.
However, despite this usage rate, the preferred starting centre-back pairing within the squad currently remains Cubarsi alongside Gerard Martin.
This immense defensive instability has forced Flick into several positional sacrifices, utilising four different right-backs throughout the campaign.
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Kounde and Garcia have been the most frequent options on the right flank, while Marc Casado and Joao Cancelo have also been called upon occasionally.
Consequently, natural centre-backs like Garcia have been entirely repurposed as midfielders and full-backs, while Cancelo has even been forced to deputise at left-back to cover the structural gaps.
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