Barcelona manager Hansi Flick facing selection quandary ahead of Inter clash after Copa del Rey final

Barcelona manager Hansi Flick masterminded his way to a second trophy in charge of the Catalan side this past Saturday, as his team came through for him in extra time against Real Madrid. Another impressive effort, nonetheless it gives Flick a selection headache for their Champions League final this Wednesday night at Montjuic, as his side host Inter.

The Italian side have plenty of their own selection concerns, with Marcus Thuram and Benjamin Pavard both doubts for the first leg, although Dutch wing-back Denzel Dumfries did return to action this weekend in their defeat to Roma. Flick’s side in theory had a day extra to rest, but between celebrations, the Copa final finishing nearly at 1am and arriving back late, they will have had little advantage.

Of the starting XI against Los Blancos, eight played 100 minutes or more: Wojciech Szczesny, Jules Kounde, Pau Cubarsi, Inigo Martinez, Pedri, Lamine Yamal, Raphinha and Ferran Torres. Torres was given a break for the final five minutes of the game, while Pedri came off in the first half of extra time. In spite of the heavy workload, Sport (via Siempre Barca) say Hansi Flick is leaning towards using most of the same players for the first leg against Inter.

Alejandro Balde is set to undergo tests today to see if he will be available for Wednesday, but in theory Gerard Martin will operate at left-back. There is a chance that Ronald Araujo comes in at centre-back after a solid showing against Real Madrid, but Flick is more likely to stick with the tried and trusted Martinez and Cubarsi.

Further forward, Flick took off the entirety of his starting midfield of Pedri, Dani Olmo and Frenkie de Jong during the Clasico, but that is the most likely place of change. Fermin Lopez could be in the side ahead of Olmo, after a strong performance, coming in for Olmo after 64 minutes. Meanwhile the front three are likely to remain the same, with Robert Lewandowski still out of action with injury.

It will be a major test of Barcelona’s fitness in the first leg especially, with heavy legs appearing in the second half against Los Blancos. Injuries to Marc Casado, Marc Bernal, Balde and Lewandowski are pushing the Blaugrana to the limits of their resources though. Gavi, Lopez, Araujo and Eric Garcia are likely to be in line for minutes, while Pau Victor was given a rare five-minute cameo in extra time.