FC Barcelona, the ‘Spanish giant’ led by new manager Hansi Flick, won against ‘English champion’ Manchester City (hereinafter referred to as Manchester City) in a penalty shootout in the first match of the 2024-2025 pre-season.
Barcelona won 4-1 on penalties after drawing 2-2 with Manchester City in a pre-season match held at Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Florida, USA on the 31st (Korean time).
Barcelona, which began its pre-season friendly against Manchester City, will play its second pre-season match, El Clásico, against La Liga rivals Real Madrid at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey on the 4th.
Barcelona, which parted ways with coach Xavi Hernandez in May, appointed Hansi Flick, who previously managed the German national team and Bayern Munich (Germany), as its successor and began preparing for the 2024-2025 season.
Coach Freak took over Barcelona’s reins with an outstanding track record of leading Munich to a ‘treble’ (triple crown) of the 2019-20 Bundesliga, UEFA Champions League, and German Football Association (DFB) Pokal.
Barcelona, which entered the pre-season ahead of the new season, started its first game under manager Flick in the United States, and its opponent 커뮤니티 was Manchester City, which is shining with four consecutive English Premier League (EPL) championships led by ‘master coach’ Pep Guardiola.
The two teams, which started the first half with mainly young players, had a tight match.
Barcelona scored the first goal.
In the 24th minute of the first half, Barcelona’s Marc Casado passed a clever pass through the midfield that broke the opposing defense line, and Pau Victor followed up with a right-footed shot from the right side of the penalty area.
It was a ‘young blood collaboration’ between 20-year-old striker Casado and 22-year-old defensive midfielder Victor.
Manchester City also immediately counterattacked, and again, the ‘young blood’ scored the equalizer.
In the 39th minute of the first half, Manchester City’s 19-year-old midfielder Nico O’Reilly scored a goal after rushing to the left side of the goal area following a pass from center back Josko Gvardiol.