Eric García was brought back to Barcelona in 2021 after the Spaniard was sold to Manchester City. Many fans did not fancy his place in Barcelona but Flick completely changed that.
Barcelona’s Flop
Eric García was back in Barcelona in 2021 and was initially brought to fill the gap in defense when Barcelona had huge defensive problems. He was young and being a La Masia product, he gained the trust of the fans and the manager.
García lacked the strength and aerial ability needed in high-intensity games and struggled in 1v1 duels against faster attackers. Barça’s high defensive line was difficult for García to adapt to, his poor pace and on-ball decisions under pressure led to costly mistakes in crucial games. A string of poor performances and criticism degraded his confidence directly affecting his confidence. He was loaned out to Girona last season, he returned to Barcelona this season and was on the verge of being sold in January but Hansi Flick wanted him to stay.
A Comeback story
He is not yet a starter for Barcelona, but his second-half cameos made fans trust him and his improvement deserves the due credit. Flick trusted him and gave him opportunities which he took well.
García is used in a double role by Flick, we saw him playing as a mid-fielder against Sevilla when Barcelona was 1 man down, García was brought to control the tempo of the game and just to get the win with the lead. Not only did he control the game extremely well, not only he was great in the recovery of the ball he also scored for Barcelona to increase the lead.
Another example is his equalizer against Benfica. Barcelona were 4-2 down and Flick brought García in to have an advantage from corners for headers and aerial challenges. García scored a great header off Pedri’s beautiful cross which brought Barcelona back in the game.
García is used as a super-sub by Flick and has been doing a phenomenal job. There were rumors of Barcelona selling him, but he proved his worth.