Flick says it's too early for Barcelona treble talk
Barcelona boss Hansi Flick was keen to keep talk of a potential treble in check after his side's Copa del Rey win over Atletico Madrid.
The Blaugrana beat Atletico 1-0 to seal a 5-4 aggregate victory and set up a final against rival Real Madrid later this month.
Barca is on a 21-game unbeaten run across all competitions and is the only team in Europe's top-five leagues yet to lose in 2025. They are top of LaLiga and also into the Champions League quarter-finals.
But Flick remained cautious about his side's chances of winning the treble and urged his players to maintain a next-game mentality, warning that his team has little margin for error.
"I know everyone wants us to talk about the final, it's a 'Clasico', I get that, but I don't live in the past or in the future and our focus should be on [Real] Betis, who are our next opponents in LaLiga," Flick said.
"Yes, we are in a great moment, but I've been in this business enough time to know how everything can change in a heartbeat, so we need to keep focused.
"Dreaming is allowed but first we need to work really hard and stay focused so we can keep that dream alive."
The Copa del Rey final is set for 26 April, two weeks before Barca and Madrid are due to meet in LaLiga – a match that could well decide the title.
It will be the eighth Copa del Rey final between Madrid and the Blaugrana. Only Barca v Athletic Club has been a final more often in the competition's history (nine times).
"I'll stick [to thinking about] this formidable win, which made me really happy," Flick said.
"Everyone can be proud of this team, we coaches are proud of this team. I am always positive, so I won't deny that I had great expectations for this team when I arrived last summer.
"I told them that I was very happy, that if we played like we did that day, we would win.
"We were brave and we knew how to suffer. It's not easy to keep a clean sheet in this stadium, Atletico are one of the best teams in Europe. So we should be really proud."
Ferran Torres got the decisive goal against Atleti.
Of the players in Europe's top five Leagues who have scored more than goals this season in all competitions, Ferran is the player with the best minutes per goal average (81).
"Winning here already tastes great, so you can imagine scoring the winner, which books a ticket to a final," Torres said.
"The match was a war, a final was at stake. We did everything we could and it was in our hands to get the victory and get that place in the final."
