Teenager’s bench reaction “fully acceptable,” says coach, after his record-breaking assist helps secure vital win.
Barcelona manager Hansi Flick has shrugged off Lamine Yamal’s visible frustration at being substituted late in Tuesday’s 2-1 Champions League win over Eintracht Frankfurt, saying he “fully understands” the teenager’s competitive fire.
Yamal, who was booked earlier in the half and will miss the next European match, wore a stern expression and appeared to be muttering to himself as he walked off in the 89th minute.
Flick, a former player himself, was quick to defend the young winger’s reaction.
“If he was a bit annoyed, then I fully understand and I like it,” Flick said after the match. “It’s fully acceptable, not a problem. We changed him because he was booked and it was late.”
The 18-year-old had every right to want to stay on the pitch. His pinpoint cross in the 58th minute set up Jules Koundé’s second goal in three minutes, completing Barcelona’s comeback. That assist also cemented Yamal’s status as a record-breaker; with 14 goal involvements in the competition, he now has more than any other teenager in Champions League history, surpassing a mark previously held by Kylian Mbappé.
The night, however, belonged to an unlikely hero. Defender Jules Koundé turned match-winner with two powerful headers in eight minutes, erasing a first-half deficit caused by Ansgar Knauff’s opener.
“It was fun to be able to attack like that,” Koundé admitted. “My first job is to defend well, but against a deep back five, you have to attack the spaces. I had success with those two goals.”
The victory continues a bizarre pattern for Barcelona, who have now conceded first in five consecutive matches before rallying to win the last four. The result lifts them to 14th in the league phase, keeping their faint hopes of a top-eight finish alive.
While pleased with the fightback, Flick acknowledged the strain of their recurring slow starts. “I’m really happy with how we come back,” he said, “but sometimes it would also be good to start well and score the first goal. It is what it is.”
With crucial games against Slavia Prague and Copenhagen ahead, Barcelona’s European fate remains in their own hands—a situation they owe largely to a defender’s scoring burst and a teenager’s historic, if briefly frustrated, contribution.
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