AS: Flick will try four central defender combinations this season and may consider rebuilding the defense with Garcia

AS reported that last season, Flick arranged for Inigo Martinez and Kubasi to partner as central defenders eight times in the first ten official games.

There were only two exceptions, one to rest Kubasi during the Villarreal game and the other to offload Inigo in the tenth game. That game was also Barcelona's first official defeat. This season, Barcelona has used four pairs of central defenders: Araujo Cubasi (five games), Garcia Cubasi (two games), Garcia Christensen (two games) and Araujo Christensen (one game).

Flick said that this is not a problem that he is particularly worried about, and that he will choose suitable players based on the characteristics of the opponent. But last season, his priority was to ensure that the Inigo-Cubasi partnership was untouchable, and he succeeded. Inigo's absence has a huge impact. He was a leader on the court and in his absence, Kubasi lost his aura. First, he had to change his position. Although he still produced well, he encountered more problems on the left side. More importantly, without Inigo's guidance, he had problems with his positioning and lost confidence in the confrontation.

Araujo regained his important role after being injured at the beginning of last season. Flick wanted to give him more responsibility, but he got off to a rocky start, so much so that Flick "hidden" him against Paris Saint-Germain and replaced him with Eric Garcia against Sevilla to improve his delivery. Clearly, Eric Garcia is the most consistent player right now.

Flick may consider rebuilding the defense starting from the Catalan. Christensen teamed up twice with Garcia and once with Araujo. The Dane should get more chances in Inigo's absence, but so far he has only played a minor role.

Barcelona's problem may not just lie with the fitness of the centre-backs, but some disconnect can be felt. Kubasi said Sunday that the pressure starts in the frontcourt. In Flick's system, if someone doesn't participate in the pressing, the defense will collapse. Beyond this, however, there is a lack of leadership at center back. Under these circumstances, it is difficult to remain competitive in the league, let alone perform in European competitions.