“Yamal is like Messi” – Ernesto Valverde heaps praise on Barcelona youngsters after Barcelona 2-1 Athletic Club

Barcelona continued their excellent form under Hansi Flick by securing another impressive 2-1 win over Athletic Club.

Robert Lewandowski and Lamine Yamal were the two scorers on the night for the Blaugrana, showing exceptional character in the final third and making life difficult for the Athletic Club defenders.

Ernesto Valverde on Cubarsi, Yamal

Speaking to the media after the loss, Athletic Club coach Ernesto Valverde did not shy away from praising some of the Barcelona youngsters, including Lamine Yamal.

The former Barcelona quote even compared Yamal to a certain Lionel Messi, stating, “Lamine Yamal. He’s like Messi. Does he surprise me? No. Everyone knows how good he is. He can dribble past anyone.”

Valverde also named one Barcelona youngster who ruined his tactical plans against Flick’s men. He was none other than defender Pau Cubarsi.

“We wanted to stop Barça from playing from the back but it was almost impossible because Pau Cubarsi didn’t miss a single pass,” he said.

It might not have been the best performance from Cubarsi last night, as he notably conceded the penalty that led to Athletic Club’s solitary goal. However, he did complete 82 passes with an accuracy of 93%.

Ernesto Valverde on Hansi Flick

Valverde went on to talk about his counterpart, Hansi Flick and the style of play he has introduced at Barcelona.

“In the end, the Barça style is always noticeable, but you can see key differences between managers. Today, you can see that Flick was practically playing with two strikers, and Raphinha as a midfielder,” he said.

Valverde, though, did admit there was no tactical change from Flick’s end when compared to Barcelona’s opening game against Valencia.

“It’s not that Flick surprised me, no. It was pretty much the same system they played against Valencia. The only change was Pedri for Casado,” he concluded.