After a terrible end to 2024, Barcelona have started the new year positively and could win their first trophy in the Hansi Flick era this weekend.
Flick’s Barca have traveled to the Middle East for the four-team Spanish Super Cup and are in the final on Sunday night after beating Athletic Club 2-0 on Wednesday night.
La Blaugrana will face familiar opposition in the competition’s showpiece event, having played Mallorca the night before Real Madrid’s 3-0 win, but they will be well aware that they are up against a team of the Los Blancos seeking revenge took place on October 26 in the Spanish capital.
Flick’s squad has become healthier at the start of 2025, but it is unlikely that there will be wholesale changes after the semi-final win. Here is the team the German could choose for Sunday’s final.
TW: Inaki Pena – Barcelona’s injury worries have eased but number one Marc-Andre ter Stegen remains out. Pena will get the nod again.
RB: Jules Kounde – Madrid’s flexibility in attack means Kounde will see multiple faces on his flank on Sunday, but the Frenchman has the tools to avoid any superstar who tries to overwhelm him.
CB: Pau Cubarsi – Recent reports suggest Flick is keen to build his defense around the teenager, with captain Ronald Araujo linked with an exit.
CB: Inigo Martinez – Araujo is back from injury but Barcelona’s formidable centre-back pairing will not fall apart this weekend after they kept a clean sheet in Wednesday’s semi-final win.
LB: Alejandro Balde – The young left-back has struggled to replicate the successes of his breakthrough year – injuries haven’t helped in that regard – but Balde showed plenty of cunning and attacking power against Athletic Club. He is undoubtedly Barca’s best option in this position.
CM: Marc Casado – La Masia’s recent bright spot has been absolutely magnificent this season and Frenkie de Jong cannot be included in the team as a result. He will team up with his compatriot at the base of the midfield to tame Jude Bellingham and Co.
CM: Pedri – The football world is a better place when Pedri is injury-free and performing at his best. He and Casado have created a joyful dynamic in Flick’s midfield pivot.
RM: Lamine Yamal – The teenager should be relatively fresh for Sunday’s final as he scored Barca’s second goal against Athletic on the hour mark. Yamal tore Madrid apart in the Clasico in October.
AM: Gavi – Flick has been back in relief for Gavi since his return from a long-term knee injury and produced his best performance of the season in a more advanced role in Wednesday’s semi-final. Since Dani Olmo is absent. The little Spaniard should remain in the same role.
LM: Raphinha – The Brazilian has had an outstanding season as a goalscorer, but he was extremely wasteful on Wednesday night. Flick will hope his stand-in captain doesn’t vacate his goalscoring shoes in 2024.
ST: Robert Lewandowski – Lewandowski also missed chances against Athletic, but he shows himself again and again in this game. The Pole has scored ten goals in 16 games against Madrid, four of which memorably came during his Borussia Dortmund appearance.