On the back of eight matches played in January, Barcelona are set for their first February fixture as they prepare to face Alaves on Sunday. The Catalans have had an excellent start to 2025, and they will hope that continues at the Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys.
Ahead of the match, Hansi Flick provided important team news during his press conference (via MD). He confirmed that Inigo Martinez has recovered from the injury he suffered against Real Madrid in the Spanish Super Cup, but the game against Alaves does come too soon for Dani Olmo.
“It’s not easy for anyone, but the calendar is what it is. We are doing quite well. Inigo is already available, but Dani needs a little more time.
Flick, who confirmed that Wojciech Szczesny will remain in goals against Alaves, also had his say on the gruelling fixture schedule that his Barcelona side has been dealing with, and will continue deal with in the coming weeks.
“For us it is important to be focused on work. Our schedule is not easy, because we will play on Monday, Saturday, in Valencia, in Seville… Maybe we will have 2 days of rest and then we can prepare a week of training. I don’t want to talk about the rest of the teams. For us, those 2 weeks without games in between are good.”
Flick also commented on the “early kick-off curse” that Barcelona have had when playing La Liga matches at 2pm.
“The preparation is not very different from another game, we must adapt. I don’t focus on statistics. I’m focused on Alaves, you have to have the desire to win and show it from the beginning. We’ll see if they play more from the defence or on the attack. We can play the same at 2 in the afternoon.”
It’s been a good start to 2025 for Barcelona, but Flick will be fully aware that they cannot rest on their laurels, as they begin another important month of action.
