Comparing Hansi Flick’s amazing Barcelona record with Pep Guardiola’s after 15 matches

Ben Stewart • 06 Nov 2024

Statistically, Barcelona have made a better start under Hansi Flick than they did under Pep Guardiola back in the 2008-09 campaign.

Coming off the back of a trophyless season in 2023-24 and being hit with a defensive injury crisis, Flick certainly had his work cut out for him when he took the Barcelona job over the summer.

However, despite not being favourites for the La Liga title before a ball was kicked, Flick’s side have started the new campaign in unbelievably good fashion.

In fact, the German boss even has a better record than Guardiola when comparing their first 15 Barcelona matches with one another.

Across all competitions, Barcelona are currently averaging 2.6 points per game under Flick, whereas the club was averaging 2.3 points per game during Guardiola’s early days with the club.

Impressively, they are also scoring more goals and winning a larger percentage of matches when comparing their start to the season with the legendary 2008-09 squad.

In La Liga, Flick’s side are currently projected to finish the season with 104 points which would be a new record for the league. For context, Guardiola accumulated 87 points during his first season at the club.

Of course, Barcelona’s great start to the season is no guarantee of success, but it has been a seriously impressive start to the campaign.

Indeed, Guardiola’s debut season as Barcelona manager will be tough to emulate as he won the treble by lifting La Liga, the Copa del Rey and Champions League.

Like Flick, Guardiola had also inherited a squad that went trophyless in the season prior to his arrival – although the Spaniard did have a core of Carles Puyol, Xavi, Andres Iniesta and Lionel Messi to build around.

While Barcelona’s current crop of players might not be as talented as the 2008-09 side, this Barcelona side shouldn’t be underestimated.

Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha and Lamine Yamal are three of the most in-form players in Europe right now and the likes of Pedri and Pau Cubarsi have also been thriving under Flick.

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“He’s really close to the players; someone who likes to talk with us,” Pedri told Mundo Deportivo when discussing life under Flick.

“Apart from being serious, he also enjoys a joke, he’s not always as serious as he appears. He helps us young players a lot. He’s always on top of what we need and you appreciate that.

“When things have to be taken seriously, though, he does. He does have that element of [being a] sergeant about him, but he’s as good as gold when he speaks with the players.”

We’ve gone ahead and crunched the numbers and have compared Flick’s first 15 Barcelona matches with Guardiola’s.