In a transfer market with new financial limitations, Barça's biggest reinforcement hasn't come from abroad or from a top club… but from the goal. Joan García has become the best signing of the summer. He showed it in his first big test: Vallecas.
Against Rayo, Barça struggled. Without rhythm, without pressure, without ideas. But Joan appeared again and again to prevent defeat.
The young goalkeeper made as many as five outstanding saves in a match where the final score (1–1) was far too generous for Flick's side. Without him, the result would have been a different story.
Flick doesn't stay quiet: "Intensity was missing"
After the final whistle, Joan García himself was self-critical. He didn't just talk about his own performance, but about the team. He acknowledged that they played with little intensity, little pressure… and he said it with the calm of someone who already has his own voice in the locker room.
Hansi Flick, meanwhile, was direct: "We didn't play a good match. We lacked aggression to press high and we were very slow in transitions." You don't need to be a coach to see who some looks were directed at: Raphinha and Lamine Yamal, expected to lead the attack, didn't show the defensive effort that others did provide.
The pressure that doesn't appear
One of Barça's great pillars in recent years has been its ability to press after losing possession. Win the ball back high, suffocate the opponent, impose rhythm. But none of that was seen in Vallecas.
When the first line fails, the whole team suffers. Both Raphinha and Lamine seem to have slowed down a gear. They no longer run with the same intensity off the ball.
It shows. The opponent plays more comfortably, the center backs are more exposed, and the team breaks apart easily. That's where Joan had to become a hero.
A warning for everyone?
What should have been a routine visit ended up being a serious warning for Barça. Flick knows it, and Joan García has made it clear with actions: talent isn't enough, you have to work. In a team full of young prospects and already established stars, whoever wants minutes will have to earn them...
With performances like this, Joan García not only secures more starts: he also raises the bar for the rest. In a Barça that wants to be feared again, that is pure gold.