Hansi Flick praised the performances of Anthony Gordon and Gabriel Jesus after they stepped in for in-form Raphinha in Barcelona‘s 3-0 win over Getafe on Saturday.
Barcelona have now won their first nine matches in all competitions for the first time in club history. It is the second time they have won their first eight LaLiga matches in a season, matching the start in 2013-14.
Barça were without the injured Raphinha — LaLiga’s top scorer and outstanding performer with 12 goals so far this season — but still went ahead through Gordon after just two minutes at Camp Nou.
Jesus, on his debut start, made it 2-0 after half an hour, and Jules Koundé added a third goal in the second half.
“This is really important,” Flick told DAZN, when asked about the contributions of Gordon and Jesus. “In every position we have two, or three players of a really good level. With everyone at the moment, you can feel we have a great atmosphere in the team.
“Everyone plays for the team, gives their best, and that’s what I like the most. In the end it’s about the team, not the individuals, not the coach.”
Gordon has impressed since joining Barça this summer, and after scoring three times for England during the international break, he netted his first goal for the Catalan club on Saturday, having already contributed four assists in LaLiga this season.
“He’s doing very well,” Flick said in his post-match news conference. “He scored with England. He has a lot of confidence. He gives us a lot.”
Barça’s win put more pressure on their rivals at the top of the table, including Real Madrid, who hosted Villarreal later on Saturday.
“Today it was very important to score the first goal very early, it gives us confidence,” Flick said. “Normally it isn’t easy after three weeks’ break to come back.
“Getafe defend really well, as a team, they’re one of the best teams in LaLiga in how they defend, so it isn’t easy to create chances. This is our way, how we want to play, we want to control the game, and control the opponent, and we did it really well.”
Gabriel Jesus started at center forward in the absence of Raphinha, who suffered a thigh problem — which Flick has said is “not serious” — on international duty with Brazil.
“Being at Barça is a dream for me, I’ve already said it a few times,” Jesus told DAZN. “Playing with these players is very easy, they always have the ball at their feet. That makes it easy as a forward to get chances, and I’m there ready to score goals.
“We’re playing very well. Let’s hope Rapha [Raphinha] gets well soon, because of course the team misses him.”
