Marcus Sorg, Barcelona’s assistant coach, who replaced Flick in the “Clásico”, spoke about Lamine Yamal after the match and how the atmosphere at the Bernabeu affected him.
Marcus Sorg, the German assistant coach who stepped in for the suspended Hansi Flick for Barcelona’s ‘Clasico’ against Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu (2-1), admitted that it “wasn’t” an “easy” match for Lamine Yamal due to the atmosphere, the close marking from Real Madrid players, and because he needs to regain his rhythm after his “injury” to recover his best form.
“It wasn’t easy for Lamine. We spoke at half-time and needed to find him more in one-on-one situations. They were better than us, we have to accept that. Lamine tried everything, but their defenders did a great job, and we have to accept that,” he said in the press conference.
“They were doubling up on him – against Lamine – trying to prevent him from getting into the box to finish… It’s normal,” he continued.
Furthermore, Marcus Sorg highlighted the lack of rhythm and the atmosphere as factors affecting Lamine’s performance in the ‘Clasico’. “After his injury, he needs rhythm and more matches. It’s normal. He’s 18 years old. We need to give him time and help him, all together. We need to work with him more to help him bring his best out on the pitch,” he pointed out.
“Possibly. Maybe a little – regarding whether the hostile atmosphere affected him. Because he’s learning to deal with the crowd, the shouting, the whistles… it’s a process, and it’s normal. Today wasn’t very easy for him,” he commented.
On the other hand, the Barcelona assistant coach analysed his team’s defeat, which leaves them five points ahead of Real Madrid in the race for La Liga title. “We made more mistakes than we’re used to. We spent a lot of time defending deep, and we didn’t create many opportunities in the final third,” he stated.
“We tried everything. We played with two strikers at the end to create more chances, but we didn’t create enough opportunities to score a second goal,” he concluded. They were without their injured Polish number ‘9’, Robert Lewandowski, for the match. When questioned about this, he asserted that they “miss him a lot”.
“He’s a key centre-forward. We miss him a lot, but in football, there are injuries, and you have to live with it. The season is long, we have 28 more matches, and we’re not worried about the situation; there’s still a long way to go,” he said.
