The timing of the comments has added fuel to the fire, arriving just days before the club's presidential election and seemingly taking aim at Joan Laporta's board. When reporters asked if the Catalan icon was wrong to speak out during such a critical week for the squad's European hopes, Flick outright refused to pass judgment on the complex matter.
"It is he who should say it, not me," he noted, cleanly deflecting the issue. Questions also arose about the uncertain future of sporting director Deco, to which Flick responded patiently: "The first thing; we have to wait. From the first day I have worked very comfortably with Deco and with Bojan Krkic. We not only analyse the first team, but also the players from La Masia, the reserve team... We talked when I arrived about Marc Casado, Marc Bernal, Gerard Martin... And we have the same idea. We are all as one. We have created a team for the future."