Barcelona have officially reached the conclusion of their pre season. However, they end the pre season on a bad note as they suffered a humiliating 3-0 defeat at the hands of the 2023/24 Ligue 1 Runner Ups in AS Monaco.
A Scoreless First Half
Flick deployed quite an adept and capable starting eleven and one which he was expected to opt for. The game played out in an organized manner where the Catalans retained a bulk of the possession.
Moreover, it was Barca’s persistence to win back the ball that kept the tides in their favour. However, the Catalans lacked offensive ingenuity in the final third and were at a wits’ end when playing around Monaco’s box.
Much of this mediocrity could be owed to the starting unit’s lack of rhythm as many of them were playing their first minutes of the pre season.
A Second Half Riddled With Chaos
As the Catalans began the second half, they lacked the cohesion that had allowed them to maintain equal footing with the opposition.
In the 50th minute, Lamine Camara gave the visitors the lead and put Barca completely on the backfoot. The hosts were now tasked with chasing the game.
This did not fare well for Flick’s men as in the 56th minute, Breel Embolo doubled the lead that Monaco had developed and put the game out of Barca’s reach.
The scoring was not halted as Monaco were sure to capitalise on Christian Mawissa’s chance to triple their lead and mark the end of their pre season with a hard earned, confidence enriching triumph.
The French Team will return to their hometown in high spirits as they will be awarded the honour of being the Joan Gamper Trophy Champions of 2024.
