Pedri hurt by criticism during injury as Cubarsi praises Barca defence

The offside trap and Pedri's form are just two of the many issues with Flick's Barca. The Canary Islander and his teammate Cubarsi spoke about it to the media after beating Espanyol in the Barcelona derby. The former Las Palmas player's speech was particularly interesting because it revealed that he was hurt by so much criticism when he was injured.

"There is a lot of work that you don't see. When you're out, you try to do everything you can to come back well: that's why it hurts when criticism rains down on you. I think I've improved in work, in nutrition... I have looked for many ways to change to have continuity and, now, I am happy to feel good physically," he said.

"The key is the intensity we put into the games, the defensive line is doing a spectacular job and, when we have the ball, we have the chance to have a lot of chances. The players we have upfront set our style: when you see how Lamine plays one-on-one or when you send a ball into space to Raphinha... the players do what they want. They are in a sweet moment," he added.

Pau Cubarsi boasted about his good understanding with Inigo Martinez: "We played a very good first half, we came out very well and we were able to take a quick lead. We're very confident and we're giving our all. We always try to play with a high defensive line to leave our opponents offside. It's risky, but we have to do it. When the VAR reviews it, we know it's offside, but some of them were fair."