Barcelona coach Hansi Flick wants his team to keep their rampant scoring streak going after beating Red Star Belgrade 5-2 in the Champions League on Wednesday to extend their winning run to seven games in all competitions.
Barça have netted at least three times in each of those seven victories — including four against both Bayern Munich and Real Madrid — and have scored three or more goals in 10 of their 16 matches this season.
Across LaLiga and the Champions League, they have already netted 55 goals, an average of over 3.4 per game, and Flick says the players’ love for competing is driving them.
“The performances are really good,” Flick said in his post-game news conference. “I really enjoy the team and I think the results, they speak their own language.
“What we are doing, really focused in every match, you can see it. [The players] are doing good about the match plan we have. They realise it on the pitch and this is good to see.
“I hope [we can maintain it] — for sure we have the confidence. Not just because of this match, but because of the whole season we have played [until] now.
“The team is doing great because they love to play football and they love to compete against any team. The best of the best, they like to compete against every team. We want to be some time [in this form] and we are working hard for that.”
It’s the first time since 2011-12 Barça have managed three or more goals in three straight Champions League games, while the last time they scored three of more times in seven successive games in all competitions was in 2017.
The majority of the team’s goals have come from Robert Lewandowski and Raphinha, with the duo both on target in the win in Belgrade, Barça’s third win in four European outings this season.
Lewandowski scored twice after Silas had cancelled out Iñigo MartÃnez‘s opener, with Raphinha and FermÃn López killing the game off before Milson’s late consolation for the home side.
The goals were Lewandowski’s 18th and 19th of the season and his 98th and 99th in the Champions League. Only Cristiano Ronaldo (140) and Lionel Messi (129) have scored more.
“If I knew before, maybe I don’t change him,” Flick joked when asked about taking Lewandowski off in the second half with the Polish forward closing in on his 100th goal in the competition.
“But we have to also think about the next match against Real Sociedad in LaLiga on Sunday. Today he scored two really important goals. The first goal especially, to make it 2-1, was very important for us.”
Defender Jules Koundé also shone in the win, providing the assists for three of the five goals from right-back.
“He is a good example for the whole team,” Flick said of the French international. “We have a lot of players that improved a lot this season, they increase their performance and Jules is an absolute professional player.
“He is very focused on the pitch and in the training. I appreciate that. That he also today gave the last pass to the goals is really good to see.”
The three points, which moved Barça into the top eight in the new Champions League table, were slightly tainted by a nasty looking cut to centre-back Pau CubarsÑs face in the second half.
Flick played down the incident, though, and suggested the 17-year-old will be fit to face La Real at the weekend.
“Pau has a cut, but he’s doing good,” Flick said. “He’s OK. It’s needed some stitches, but he’s good. He’s laughing, so it’s OK.”