"Early on Sunday morning Hansi Flick got a call from his mum telling him that his father had died overnight. Hansi Sr was 82 and he had been ill for some time. The day that Barcelona were going to win the league again, the first clasico back at the Camp Nou, had just begun and their coach was not sure what to do, yet he also knew. I [thought]: should I hide it or should I speak with my team, because for me it is like a family?', he said."
"I said OK, I want to get the information to my players, and what they did is unbelievable. I will never forget this moment. None of them would. Barcelona's players had arrived at the Torre Melina hotel on the Diagonal at midday, where the man many of them consider a father told them about his. Now it was close to midnight and together they celebrated a title that was his too."
"For the first time in 94 years, the clasico had decided La Liga, if decided is really the word when it was done a while ago. Barcelona's superiority in the 2-0 victory that finally ended it was incontestable as it had been virtually all season, Real Madrid's players withdrawing swiftly, relieved that at least it was over now and leaving the stadium to them, the first round of fireworks exploding into the sky and a sardana forming in the centre circle."
"The presidents of the league and the Federation came down, the trophy was handed out on the night it was actually won, which is news in a competition where they could rarely be bothered before, there were brief speeches Bona nit, culers, Flick began, before continuing in English and Ronald Araujo led a lap of honour. Pau Cubarsi took the megaphone Well, no one else wanted to Raphinha took the drum and Marc Casado took a giant Catalan flag. They gave Flick the bumps, throwing him in the air. Mostly, though, they held him close."
Hansi Flick received a call early Sunday morning informing him that his father had died overnight. His father was 82 and had been ill for some time. With Barcelona about to win the league again and the first Clasico back at Camp Nou underway, Flick was unsure whether to hide the news or tell his team. He chose to inform his players, and their response was described as unbelievable. Players arrived at the Torre Melina hotel at midday, where they were told about his father. Near midnight, they celebrated the title together, with Barcelona’s 2-0 victory ending La Liga for the first time in 94 years. The trophy ceremony included league and federation presidents, speeches, a lap of honour led by Ronald Araujo, and a celebratory atmosphere featuring chants, instruments, and Catalan symbols while players held Flick close.
Read at www.theguardian.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]