Winning the League. And then, executing a renewal as eagerly awaited by Barcelona fans as desired by Hansi Flick, his family, and, of course, Joan Laporta. That was the premise Deco noted in his agenda when he heard the German coach say he wanted to remain linked to the Barcelona club after being eliminated in the Champions quarterfinals against Atlético at the end of March.
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Said and done. According to this newspaper, Pini Zahavi, the German coach’s agent, traveled to Barcelona this week with pen in hand. And this Monday morning, just hours after Barcelona lifted the 29th League in its history, the second consecutive for Flick, the agent met with Deco at the training ground to sign the agreement: Flick, with a contract until 2027, will remain linked to the blaugrana club until 2028. The equation also includes an optional year.
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Initially, Laporta’s desire was to extend that link until 2029, but Flick, committed to the project, the club, and the fans, prefers to go year by year. It is part of the prudence and responsibility that characterize him. Hence, extending the link until 2029 depends not only on him but also on the trust the club has in the German at that time.
During this time, Flick has two goals – or two dreams, as the coach likes to say, avoiding concepts like obsession or obligation. The first is to win the Champions League. The second is to inaugurate the new Spotify Camp Nou when it is fully completed and can host more than 105,000 spectators.
The definitive return to the stadium would be completed, in principle, by mid-2027-28 season, with almost two years delay, coinciding with Flick’s last – or penultimate – year, according to his own plans.
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They are also the goals of his family: his wife, Silke, whom he met at 18, and his two daughters, Kathrin and Hannah, born in 1989 and 1991. The youngest, Hannah Flick, has made him a grandfather twice. The images of Flick after the clásico, surrounded by all of them and his grandchildren, reflect the importance and weight they have in his life. Certifying his renewal with his other family, the blaugrana one, made him smile even more in days of emotions as intense as they were contrasting after the loss of his father, who passed away at 81 in the early hours of Sunday.
Flick also enjoys the city that has welcomed him with open arms. For this reason, he decided not only to maintain the plans for yesterday’s parade through the streets of Barcelona but also to join the Barcelona fans’ celebration. He loves walking around the city and discovering it in his free time and interacting with the fans. Gastronomy is another of his passions, and for that reason, he usually gathers the people he works with around a table, both to bond and to celebrate good news. His renewal, which will be official in the coming days, will undoubtedly be one of those occasions.
The Barcelona bench, the last of his professional career
Barça’s bench will be the last of his professional career. Until then, he will continue working with the discipline and empathy that characterize him to lead a very young team. Now that he has already won the League and keeping in mind that at the end of the month he will travel to his native Germany to say goodbye to his father, he will also sit in his office with Deco to outline the project for the next season.
It will be his responsibility to communicate what moves he wants to make regarding arrivals and what departures he considers necessary. He will also be the one to convey those decisions.
