Barcelona headed to Belgium and a date with Club Brugge, a game which on paper should’ve been a victory for Hansi Flick’s side.
The German coach had noted pre-game that the opponents shouldn’t be underestimated despite a heavy Champions League loss to Bayern last time out.
With nine home wins from 10 games in all competitions in 2025/26, the Catalans would once again need to be at their best if they wanted to return to Barcelona with all three points.
Let’s take a look at three things we learned from the game…
Defensively inept… again
Having Ronald Araujo at the heart of Barcelona’s defence when the opposition have players with pace to burn is, frankly, suicidal.
The Uruguayan once appeared destined to be a real mainstay for this team, however, he remains a senior player that can’t even get the basics right.
Club captain he may be, but that also means he has to lead by example.
Having him running around like a headless chicken, consistently leaving his position and therefore enabling an opponent to move easily within acres of space, followed by the throwing up of his arms when chances are created or, as happened in the first half, simple goals are scored, aren’t the actions of a leader.
At the very least he could marshall the high line more effectively, but how easily was it breached for Club Brugge’s goals?!
We can sit and blame the likes of Kounde and Balde all day and yes, they do need to take their fare share of responsibility, but Araujo should be the eyes and the voice to ensure his back four play as one.
Lamine from zero to hero
Notwithstanding that he was often double or even triple marked at times, something seemed a little off with Lamine Yamal in the first half.
The youngster’s demeanour appeared to be that of a player with the weight of the world on his shoulders.
Of course, given how much he’s been built up over the last 12-18 months, when things don’t go right, it wouldn’t be a surprise if he felt exactly that way.
There was a reticence in his play at times, and with his recent injury needing to be monitored carefully too, perhaps, subconsciously, that was affecting Lamine’s decision making.
After the break it was an entirely different story and, just like that, he comes up with a piece of skill so outrageous it beggars belief.
An absolute work of art that once again marks him out amongst his contemporaries.
Lack of invention in midfield
Pedri being forced to rest isn’t the worst thing in the world to happen, but his absence remains incredibly noticeable.
Frenkie de Jong, Marc Casado and Fermin Lopez were businesslike for the most part, but none of the trio, or sub Dani Olmo, had the inventiveness to make something happen.
Possession for possession’s sake is fine, but there comes a point where a player or players needs to be able to quicken the tempo, pull players out of position and open up spaces for others.
That appeared to be lacking on Wednesday.
