FC Barcelona has finished their US Preseason Tour and will kick off their 2024/25 campaign on August 18th against Valencia. Coming on the back of a significant run in the US Tour, where they defeated two of the biggest European clubs at present, Man City and Real Madrid, the Blaugrana club would have high hopes for themselves coming into the new season.
Are too many midfield options a problem for Hansi Flick?
Barca's preseason tour brought the spotlight on some of the most talented young stars, Pau Victor, Pablo Torre, and, in particular, the rock-solid duo of Marc Bernal and Marc Casado. Moreover, with Fermin Lopez stealing the show at the Paris Olympics and delivering a masterclass of six goals in six starts, Barcelona's midfield options have stretched impressively. Thus, the question arises: are too many midfield options a problem for Hansi Flick?
Initially, clouds of doubt prevailed on the Blaugrana club's midfield department, as having Pedri, De Jong, and Gavi injured, it looked like who would start in the midfield. At that stage, it felt like Barcelona would have to rely on the veteran Ilkay Gundogan and hope for sensational midfield options to emerge from the La Masia academy.
And that's exactly what happened: with the Preseason Tour 2024, a storm of young midfielders arrived at the Blaugrana club. With Pablo Torre in the central attacking role, along with the pivot duo of Casado-Bernal, Barca looks set to start their new campaign. Currently, Flick's system allows the duo of Casado-Bernal to start in his double-pivot playstyle.
However, with Fermin rising above everyone's level at the Olympics 2024, scoring six goals in his six starts for the Spanish side, he has been sensational. Add to that Barca's dream signing, Dani Olmo, brought in to cater to the attacking midfield role at the head of Barcelona's midfield.
Imagining this scenario with Pedri set to return around the first La Liga matchday and a player of the capability of Ilkay Gundogan available, this certainly seems a case of too many options in the club's midfield position. Thus, Hansi Flick would need to optimize his priorities according to the game's situation to utilize every possible option without sidelining anyone.