These were quite successful friendlies for FC Barcelona during their camp in the USA. The Catalans faced Manchester City, Real Madrid and AC Milan. They managed to win against the “Royal” in the pre-season El Clasico (2:1), while with the English and Italians they drew after 90 minutes (1:1 and 2:2), after which they agreed to penalty shootouts with their rivals. In the clash with City, Barcelona were better in them (4:1), and against Milan, the Milanese came out victorious (4:3).
Lewandowski shined against Milan
Robert Lewandowski was not the main actor in these preparations for a long time. The Pole did score a penalty in the series against Manchester and assisted Pau Victor's goal against Real. However, the match against Milan was already his showcase. His two goals, which he responded to goals by Luka Jovic and Christian Pulisic, allowed Barcelona to end the American phase of the pre-season without a defeat in regular time. The Pole was also, of course, named man of the match.
Hansi Flick to rebuild Lewandowski? Pole excited about renewed cooperation
For him, it was a match in the style of those he regularly played under Hansi Flick, when they worked together at Bayern. Let us recall that the captain of the Polish national team had his best period with this coach. It was with Flick that Lewandowski scored the legendary 41 goals in a single Bundesliga season, breaking Gerd Müller's record, and in 2020 he fulfilled his dream of winning the Champions League. In an interview for the Bild newspaper, our striker did not spare praise for the coach and was looking forward to working together again.
– He is open to his players and places great emphasis on physics. This can help the team in difficult moments of the season or a single match. Hansi's teams have always been at the highest level. I am happy that we are working together again. I think we have a great season ahead of us, which we will crown by winning trophies – said Lewandowski.
The new La Liga season starts on Friday, August 16, 2024, and Barcelona will start the following day at 9:30 p.m. They will face Valencia away. On the way, they also have a traditional pre-season friendly for the Gamper Cup (in honor of the club's former president Joan Gamper), which this time they will play against AS Monaco. This match will take place on Monday, August 12 at 8:00 p.m. at the Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys in Barcelona.