FC Barcelona suffered a heavy defeat against Atlético de Madrid in the first leg of the Copa del Rey semi-finals at the Metropolitano. Under Hansi Flick the team produced its worst opening 45 minutes since his arrival and failed to build the platform for a comeback in the second half, despite opportunities. A streak of six consecutive wins (and 17 victories in the last 18 matches) ended abruptly, though the coach suggested the result might serve as a wake-up call.

Self-criticism and thorough analysis must dominate in the dressing room in the coming days. Barcelona need to learn from the mistakes and train to avoid repeating them, particularly ahead of crucial LaLiga and Champions League fixtures. There will be time to dream of a Copa del Rey comeback at Spotify Camp Nou, but the team cannot fall back into the errors that condemned them at the Metropolitano.

1) Poor starts. While Barça has shown an exceptional capacity to overturn matches — nine comebacks so far this season — the team frequently begins games on the back foot. In 2026 specifically, Barcelona had led at half-time in only 3 of 12 matches (25%). Against Atlético, their start lacked the required intensity and energy for a semi-final: Atlético won most duels, exploited spaces to run into and generally outplayed Barça.

2) Simeone won the tactical opening; Flick failed to adjust. Diego Simeone’s side got the better of the early tactical exchanges: their forwards read balls into space, switched flanks at the right moments and created easy finishing chances. Barcelona’s defensive transitions were too slow, and while players bear much of the responsibility, Hansi Flick did not make the necessary corrections when his team was clearly being overrun. It would be unfair to dismiss the coach’s previous achievements, but the tactical model must include mechanisms to stay competitive during difficult phases.

3) Too many individual errors. Individual mistakes are part of football and it would be wrong to single out players after just one bad match, yet nearly every Barça player was below their best. Examples of costly lapses included Joan García’s major error leading to the first goal, Alejandro Balde’s poor reading of his back, Ferran Torres losing the ball in the sequence that involved Eric García’s sending off, and Frenkie de Jong’s positioning issues in Atlético’s goals. These avoidable errors cannot happen in high-stakes games.

4) Inability to respond to adversities. The night saw a string of unfortunate moments: Pau Cubarsí’s goal was disallowed after more than seven minutes of VAR review; Giuliano Simeone avoided a sending-off; Fermín López hit the crossbar; and Ferran Torres’s header grazed the post defended by Juan Musso. Barça could not overcome those setbacks mentally. Although the second half started better, the annulled goal blunted their momentum. Going forward, the team must improve its mental resilience to bounce back quickly from such uncontrollable events.

5) Without Pedri and Raphinha it becomes much harder. Barcelona once again felt the absence of these two key players beyond Lamine Yamal and Joan García. All six defeats this season occurred in matches where Raphinha did not play a single minute, and although the numbers without Pedri are not as poor, the Canary Islander is crucial both in possession play and defensive recovery. The added absence of Marcus Rashford forced Dani Olmo to move to the left wing, leaving the team without the natural substitutes for Raphinha and Pedri. Injuries once more weakened the squad in a key game, while Atlético’s second-half bench included Baena, Sorloth, Thiago Almada and Le Normand.

Conclusion: Barcelona must work on faster match starts, reduce individual lapses, improve tactical flexibility and strengthen psychological resistance. There is time to prepare for the return leg at Spotify Camp Nou, but the team cannot repeat the mistakes that proved decisive in Madrid.