Spanish Football Federation Stunned by Flick's Reaction

Football Federation Stunned by Hansi Flick’s Reaction

Comments by Hansi Flick expressing disappointment with Spanish coach Luis de la Fuente’s handling of Lamine Yamal during the recent international break have caused a considerable stir within the Spanish Federation (RFEF). This issue is undoubtedly going to be a hot topic in the coming days, a gap that should be resolved quickly, especially considering there are still two more international call-ups remaining until the end of 2025, with the next ones being Spain’s matches against Georgia on October 11 and Bulgaria on October 14.

🗣️ – Hansi Flick: “Lamine Yamal will not be available for tomorrow, it's a shame. He played with the national team in pain. He had issues, played 79 and 73 minutes, and didn't train between matches because of this pain, and that is not taking care of the players.”

Via:… pic.twitter.com/HirMSJFvBh
— Barça Buzz (@Barca_Buzz) September 13, 2025

The Federation’s Response

The medical staff of the national team indicate that at no point did anyone from Barça reach out to the Federation’s counterparts to report any discomfort from the young Barcelona forward when he joined Luis de la Fuente’s squad for the matches against Bulgaria and Turkey, where Lamine Yamal played a prominent role, logging 79 and 73 minutes, respectively.

Furthermore, the Federation highlights that one of the physios for the national team is Fernando Galán, who for years has been looking after Barça players when they are on duty with the national team, and who is also an external physiotherapist for Barça when the players return to the club.

Galán is directly responsible for treating Barça’s footballers when they are with the Spanish squad. The RFEF emphasizes this detail as proof of the care and attention given to all players called up, and they assert that if Galán had detected any issues, they would have informed Luis de la Fuente, and Lamine Yamal would not have played in these matches.

The Federation points to the recent call-up as an example of the good communication between Luis de la Fuente, the Federation, and the clubs—including Barça. Barcelona’s Gavi, along with Yeremy Pino (Crystal Palace) and Fabián Ruiz (PSG), who were initially summoned, were sent home or even didn’t travel to Madrid. This, they insist, is proof of the ongoing dialogue with Barcelona, despite Hansi Flick questioning the communication channels maintained with Luis de la Fuente.

Robert Dominguez