Flick's Barca vs Xavi's Barca: is there really a difference?

Hansi Flick's appointment as Barcelona manager seemed to have kickstarted a new era for the Catalans. But as we approach the end of December, and thus the end of the year, the victories over their European rivals Bayern Munich (4-1) and arch-nemesis Real Madrid (0-4) earlier in the season now appear to be distant memories as Barca are right back to where they were a year ago.

In their latest match against Atletico Madrid, the 'Cules' were battling for a temporary first position in the La Liga table, but were crushed to a frustrating home defeat in the dying moments of the game. They now find themselves in third place with Diego Simeone's side, who have a game in hand, ahead by three points - exactly where they were this time last year with Xavi at the helm. 

In December 2023, Xavi concluded the year on matchday 18 (matchday 19 was played in 2024 last season) by beating Almeria, which put him six points behind then-league leaders Girona. Meanwhile, 'Los Blancos' were in second place with a three-point lead over Barca, who could only enjoy being in first place for one week before spending the rest of the campaign between fourth place and the runners-up spot they eventually achieved. On the other hand, this season's Barcelona has been at the summit of La Liga for 16 rounds in total.

While the atmosphere is relatively calmer this time, the numbers reveal many similarities between Xavi's Barca and Flick's Barca. Given that this 2024 squad has played an extra fixture due to the Super Cup, percentages will be used for a fairer comparison of the two managers' tenures at the club. In summary, the German coach goes from one end to the other: he wins and scores more, but he also loses and concedes more than his predecessor.

El 'Clasico' as the difference-maker

At this stage, Barcelona have won 68% (17) and lost 24% (6) of their matches under Flick, similar to Xavi's percentages: 62% wins (15) and 16% losses (4). However, the difference is much more notable in the number of draws as the former midfielder counts five draws (20.8%), compared to the former Bayern boss' two draws (8%). If we only consider the league, the 'Azulgrana' only have three more points than last year at this point in La Liga (41 instead of 38), emphasising that the competition is the difference-maker.

Nevertheless, this year's squad has had more highlights to look back on. Their most important one was undoubtedly their 4-0 triumph over Real Madrid in 'El Clasico' on October 26, which marked the seventh of a run of consecutive victories with a minimum of three goals scored per game. At that point, Barcelona had already suffered a couple of defeats against Monaco (2-1) in the Champions League and Osasuna (4-2) in La Liga, which indicated that they were not unbreakable. In the previous campaign, Xavi's men went on a 13-match unbeaten streak before eventually crumbling against the 'Merengues' (1-2) on October 28. 

But just as it seemed that Flick had finally gotten the club out of their miseries for good, things started to divert as Barcelona endured a nightmare month of November. The 'Blaugranas' lost to Real Sociedad (1-0), drew to Celta Vigo (2-2) and then lost again to Las Palmas at home (1-2). But December was no better as they lost three times in a row at the Montjuic with defeats against Leganes (0-1) and recently Atletico Madrid (1-2). They have not lost this many times at home since 1965, when they lost back-to-back games against Valencia (1-2), Atlético (1-4) and Real Zaragoza (0-1).

Fortunately for Barcelona, things are looking much brighter in Europe as they sit second in the Champions League league-phase standings. Only Liverpool are ahead with a perfect point tally from the first 5 matches. Their only setback was against Monaco, as previously mentioned, which was followed by victories over Young Boys (5-0), Bayern (4-1), Crvena Zvezda (3-0) and Borussia Dortmund (2-3). With two games remaining, Flick's side eye direct qualification into the knockout stages. Last year's edition of the tournament saw Barcelona get knocked out by PSG in the quarter-finals. Despite winning his group - something he failed to do in his first year in charge - Xavi risked giving up the lead following a shocking defeat in Antwerp. Nevertheless, his fate was already marked before he faced the Parisians as he had been announcing his exit well ahead of the game. 

The Rise of Raphinha

On an individual note, one of the biggest differences that can be noted is that Xavi did not have the current version of Raphinha during his tenure. The Brazilian seems to have revived his career under Hansi Flick, counting 17 goals and 8 assists when last year he ended the season with 10 goals and 11 assists. Now with the captain's armband on, he is not only a vital asset in Barcelona's attack but also in the club's dressing room. Robert Lewandowski is another example of a player who has turned his fortunes around following the change of managers. By the end of 2023, he had only scored 9 goals (26 in the whole season), but he is now signing off the calendar year with 23 goals to his name. Lamine Yamal, who has 17 goal contributions, has also been another fundamental player for the German head coach in his debut season.

With players as committed as the ones mentioned above, Flick's side have scored 72 goals in 25 games, 2.88 per game on average. Such figures have not been seen at the club since the ‘MSN’ days. On the other hand, the former Germany head coach lacks when it comes to defending. Under Flick, the Catalans have conceded 29 goals (1.19) and have only managed to keep six clean sheets, while Xavi's team had only conceded 27 (1.12) and kept nine clean sheets.

Last year, squad balance was the focus whereas this year we have seen a significantly more entertaining side, with Flick's offside trap and high defensive line tactics stealing the headlines and giving fans many memorable nights. But the Martinez and Cubarsi partnership at the back was bound to reveal its weaknesses at some point, which Sorloth took advantage of when he handed Atletico the winner in the 96th minute. Still, there is little to blame them for as opposed to someone like Frenkie de Jong, for example. The Dutchman has received heavy backlash for his mistakes, even more so this season as newcomers like Marc Casado show that perhaps he is not so indispensable.

It is precisely young talents like the Spanish midfielder and Lamine Yamal (Euro 2024 champion and Golden Boy winner) who make fans believe more in this project. Despite the obstacles along the way, there is a mutual feeling that sticking with Flick for a while could be the way forward. With stars like Gavi back from injury, Araujo returning to the squad soon and new-signing Dani Olmo shaking up things in midfield things look better for Barcelona. It remains to be seen whether the club can forget their disappointing end to the year and hit the 'reset' button for 2025. Their next fixture will see them take on Barbastro in the last 32 of the Copa del Rey on January 4.