BARCELONA: Barcelona coach Hansi Flick said Saturday he is focussed on winning games despite the threat of a potential punishment for an ineligible line-up rumbling on in the background.
Flick selected Inigo Martinez in the 3-0 win over Osasuna in La Liga on Thursday, after the Spanish defender had withdrawn injured from the national team squad for their recent Nations League matches.
Osasuna appealed to the Spanish football federation on Friday over Martinez being ineligible, citing FIFA rules regarding players which have not joined up with their national teams when called on.
“We won three points and this is my focus, so I’m focussing on the next match against Girona,” Flick told a news conference Saturday, a day before leaders Barcelona host Girona in La Liga.
“The other thing is not in my hands, it’s not about me.”
FIFA rules state that players cannot appear for their clubs within five days of the last national team match, if they did not join the squad when called upon without the federation’s permission.
Martinez played 90 minutes against Osasuna after pulling out of international duty with knee discomfort, as Barcelona took a three-point lead at the top of the table.
The match was played on Thursday after being initially postponed from March 8, when a Barca club doctor died, with neither side wanting to play it this week but both having appeals against it rejected.
Flick lined up against Osasuna with star striker Robert Lewandowski on the bench, although he later scored when appearing as a substitute.
The Polish veteran has 23 goals in La Liga, leading the scoring charts, known as the Pichichi, ahead of Real Madrid’s Kylian Mbappe on 20.
“Lewandowski is focussed on the success of the team, not just winning the Pichichi,” said Flick.
“Of course he wants to score goals, he wants to play, but he also sees what the team needs.
“This makes me really proud, about the behavior of Lewy, and it was a really great situation, a great moment and everything went the right way against Osasuna, so it’s something I really appreciate.”
Martinez punishment ‘out of Flick’s hands’ as Barca focus on title
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Martinez punishment ‘out of Flick’s hands’ as Barca focus on title
- Osasuna appealed to the Spanish football federation on Friday over Martinez being ineligible
- “We won three points and this is my focus, so I’m focussing on the next match against Girona,” Flick told a news conference
Barcelona pounces on Real Madrid stumble and regains lead of La Liga with a 3-0 win over Levante
- Barcelona moved one point ahead of Madrid, which had won eight in a row in the league before losing to Osasuna
MADRID: Barcelona took advantage of Real Madrid’s stumble and regained the Spanish league lead with a comfortable 3-0 win over relegation-threatened Levante on Sunday.
Marc Bernal, Frenkie de Jong and Fermín López scored a goal each as Barcelona ended a two-game losing streak to get back in front of rival Madrid, which lost 2-1 at Osasuna on Saturday.
Barcelona moved one point ahead of Madrid, which had won eight in a row in the league before losing to Osasuna.
Barcelona was coming off a 2-1 loss to Girona in the league and a 4-0 loss to Atletico Madrid in the first leg of the Copa del Rey semifinals.
“It was important to win and earn three points again,” Barcelona defender João Cancelo said. “Soccer gives you these opportunities to rebound and that’s what we did today, playing well again after two bad games.”
Barcelona had earned a clean sheet only once in its previous six games in all competitions.
Good start for Barcelona
Bernal scored from close range four minutes into the match at the Camp Nou Stadium. The 18-year-old Bernal had scored his first goal with the first team two rounds ago in a win over Mallorca.
“They had an early chance but my goal helped us settle and gain some confidence,” Bernal said.
De Jong added to the lead from inside the area in the 32nd and López sealed the victory with a beautiful long-range shot in the 81st, with the ball ricocheting off the post before going into the net.
Levante’s Australian goalkeeper Mathew Ryan kept Barcelona from adding the fourth with a pair of outstanding saves in a row in the final minutes, first off a header by Raphinha and then off a point-blank strike from López on the rebound.
It was the fourth straight defeat for Levante, which sits in 19th place. It is one point ahead of last-place Oviedo, which has a game in hand.
Levante has only one victory in its last eight matches.
Pedri entered the match in the 66th to make his return to action after an injury layoff.
Other results
Sevilla won 1-0 at 10-man Getafe for its second win in its last 10 matches in all competitions.
Djibril Sow scored a 64th-minute winner for the visitors. Getafe played a man down from the 26th after a straight red card for Djene Dakonam.
The result left Sevilla in 11th place, immediately above Getafe.
Third-place Villarreal, Barcelona’s next league opponent, can restore a three-point gap to fourth-place Atletico Madrid if it beats Valencia at home later Sunday. Atletico beat Espanyol 4-2 at home on Saturday.
