Hansi Flick stepped into the away dressing room at the Signal Iduna Park after the Champions League quarter-finals and all he could see was a hurt group of players.
“There wasn’t a great atmosphere there,” the manager said during his post-match media duties. “But then I said ‘Guys, it’s time to cheer up, we are in the semi-finals of the Champions League and we have to celebrate it now!’”.
Barcelona made their 4-0 result in the first-leg count and went through to the exclusive group of only four teams still fighting for the Champions League trophy. They were outplayed in Germany, though. Borussia Dortmund put up a proper fight before leaving the competition — their 3-1 win was fuelled by a hat-trick from Sekou Guirassy and outlined some good signs after Nico Kovac took over the team earlier this season.
It also saw Barcelona’s wonder run come to an end — Flick’s side had not lost a game since the start of 2025, adding up to a series of 24 games unbeaten. This is the fourth longest run in the club’s history. No team has managed a longer unbeaten run in Europe’s top-five leagues this season — they are tied with Arne Slot’s Liverpool.
If that had to end, Dortmund was the perfect night. The slight bit of pressure and the expectations around this team are now off their shoulders, and it only took a harmless defeat. They have played seven games over the last 19 days, having enhanced their chances of winning every competition in the process.
But Flick’s players were far from pleased. Besides the 3-1 defeat, the Catalans were victims of the worst single-match xG difference in any Champions League knockout match this season.
Barcelona are through to the semis after enduring the worst single-match xG difference (-3.36) of the 2024-25 Champions League knockout stages. pic.twitter.com/7U9QVsueuA
— Opta Analyst (@OptaAnalyst) April 15, 2025
“Being brutally honest, I am disappointed with our game,” said Jules Kounde to Spanish broadcasters Movistar after the match. “We have been below the required standard. There have been mistakes, we were sloppy. I am disappointed because I know this team is better than that”.
Kounde was absolutely right and it can be an encouraging sign to Barcelona fans to see the high standards instilled in the dressing room. But taking part in the Champions League semi-finals must mean more for Barcelona than an isolated defeat.
They have not reached these European heights for the last six years. The last time Barcelona took part in the competition’s final four they lost 4-0 at Anfield. The pain didn’t just remain and sting the club’s insides and their fans — it got even bigger.
Barcelona have not been able to make it through the group stage twice in those six years. They’ve suffered Europa League humiliations against Manchester United and Eintracht Frankfurt. The Champions League quarter-finals were reached only twice. In one of them, Bayern Munich put eight goals past them. Barcelona were not able to find happiness on the European stage — and the end to that didn’t seem to be near.
Last summer, when Hansi Flick agreed to join the club, he seemed to be taking on an impossible job. Nine months later, they are among the four best teams in Europe, holding the best goalscoring figures among the top-five leagues and averaging over three goals per game in the Champions League.
Flick’s turnaround needs to be cherished and backed — especially after a night when things did not go to plan. Over 3,000 Barcelona fans were present at the Signal Iduna Park, making it the club’s biggest away following abroad this season. Barcelona fans know how they’ve felt all those years. It is on them now to enjoy a return to the biggest platform club football can offer.
“Of course, we did not have a good game tonight, but now it’s time to celebrate,” insisted Flick. “I won’t be too harsh on my players now, they have been unbelievable this season. Tomorrow, we’ll watch the game again and analyse what we can do better from here”.
There will be plenty of conclusions to draw for the 60-year-old as soon as he rewatches the match. First on the list will be the realisation of how irreplaceable Pedri has become in this team.
The Spain international was benched in Dortmund, with Flick desperate to give him a break after starting every game since the start of the year.
Frenkie de Jong, Gavi and Fermin Lopez formed the midfield, and they were unable to set the tone and dominate the tempo throughout the whole game. Pedri had to be called into action after 60 minutes.
There is another painful reality with Ronald Araujo. The 26-year-old started in Dortmund ahead of Inigo Martinez, who was one booking away from being suspended for the semi-final. Flick decided to protect him. Araujo, however, was a liability once again.
He gave away the ball on his own box to Guirassy for his third goal of the night, was shaky on the ball and struggled with the tactical complexity of Flick’s high defensive line — and how it impacts centre-backs.
Last weekend, Araujo was subbed off at half-time against low-block Leganes after his difficulties in Barcelona’s build-up process were exposed. His confidence levels are at one of their lowest points in the last few seasons. Replacing either Martinez or Pau Cubarsi would be another tough ask for Flick.
No club in the world can expect to reach Champions League glory without bumps in the road. Dortmund was one of them for Barcelona, and more will come.
Inter Milan or Bayern Munich await in the semi-finals, two sides that can be expected to be a level above Benfica and Dortmund, the opposition they’ve faced so far in the knockouts.
“Hopefully this game is a good lesson to all of our young players,” said 36-year-old Robert Lewandowski after the Dortmund game. Lewandowski is one of the five footballers in the current Barcelona squad who has played in a Champions League semi-final — alongside Marc Andre Ter Stegen, Frenkie de Jong, Andreas Christensen and Dani Olmo.
He added: “In this competition, you need to be prepared. Not at 90 per cent, not at 95 per cent… it has to be 100 per cent.”
If that’s the learning Flick’s Barcelona took from the Dortmund scare, there is a chance this was the night when the foundations of a historical season started to be placed.
(Top photo: Alex Grimm/Getty Images)
