Flick excuses Raphinha and praises De la Fuente’s work

Hansi Flick said he was “pleased” with De la Fuente’s work with his players and defended Raphinha, while also referring to the situation recurring. The coach acknowledged that the Brazilian returned in a weakened condition after the international break, which kept him without most of his squad for nearly three weeks.

Flick stressed Raphinha’s commitment to his national team and the importance to a player of representing his country. “The national team is the national team, and for everyone the main objective is to defend their country,” he said, adding that Raphinha “always gives 100%”. He excused him despite his diminished condition on his return, but questioned whether it had been necessary for him to play in Australia, involving travel over thousands of kilometres.

The coach linked the difficulty to the international fixture calendar. He said friendlies could not be staged in Europe because of the Nations League, and that players were under considerable pressure. In his view, national teams also lacked matches in which to assess other players and rest those who had played the most minutes. Flick said he had to accept the situation and manage his players’ minutes in his own team, even though he considered it “not the best way” to do things.

He was, however, keen to praise De la Fuente: “I greatly appreciate what he is doing with my players; it is perfect.” Flick added that their relationship was very good and said he was happy to see the coach’s work, describing his national team as the best in the world.