Hansi Flick lambasts Ronald Araujo for costly red card

Chelsea’s intensity, physicality, and aggression in 1v1 duels repeatedly pushed Barcelona back, with the visitors losing far too many simple balls under pressure and inviting wave after wave of attacks from the Premier League side.

For a team that still believes it can compete with Europe’s best, the gulf on the night was impossible to ignore.

The match’s turning point arrived just before half-time, when captain Ronald Araujo received a second yellow card for a rash challenge, leaving Barcelona to survive with ten men and effectively killing any realistic chance of a comeback, as reported by Diario Sport.

Hansi Flick later admitted that the dismissal “changed everything,” stressing that it is never easy to chase a game a man down against a Chelsea team so comfortable on the ball.

While he refused to completely throw his defender under the bus, the coach did hint that Araujo’s decision-making must improve in such high-stakes situations, acknowledging that the second intervention was one that “could have been avoided” and came at precisely the wrong moment for his side.

Beyond the red card, Flick was keen to highlight deeper structural issues that cost Barcelona the match.

He dismissed the idea that the high defensive line alone was to blame, instead pointing to the sheer number of unforced errors in possession and the lack of composure in building from the back.

Yet, despite the heavy defeat and the blow to Barça’s top-eight Champions League hopes, Flick clung to optimism.

He underlined the improvements he sees in training, the return of key players, and the fact that three games – and nine points – still remain.