Barca boss Flick not planning on resting Raphinha against Betis

Barcelona manager Hansi Flick is unlikely to rest Raphinha for their LaLiga match at Real Betis on Saturday, the German manager said on Monday.

Flick opted to rest LaLiga top-scorer Robert Lewandowski, who started 20 straight matches in all competitions, for Barcelona's 5-1 victory at Mallorca, in which Raphinha scored twice.

Asked if it could be the Brazilian's turn to be rested on the weekend, Flick told reporters: "We need Rapha. When he is available, he will play.

"If he's ready for 90 minutes, then he'll play 90 minutes. So is Lewandowski, who will also play tomorrow."

Barcelona, who top the LaLiga standings with 37 points from 16 matches, snapped a three-game winless run in the league with the victory over Mallorca.

Raphinha has been on a different level for Barcelona this season 🤯 pic.twitter.com/04XLhoiwjB

— OneFootball (@OneFootball) December 3, 2024

The Catalan outfit will be looking to continue their momentum and face 10th-placed Real Betis, who are winless in their last four league matches.

"Betis are a very good team, with very experienced players. They are always capable of pressing high up the pitch, that's their style and we have to be careful," Flick said.

"They know how to play and we have to be focused... Manuel (Pellegrini) is a very experienced coach, his teams always play very good football.

"His style is very good, his teams like to have the ball. It's not easy for opponents to play against him."

ON LOAN VITOR ROQUE

Saturday's match will also reunite Barcelona with 19-year-old forward Vitor Roque, who has scored five goals in all competitions since leaving the club on loan to join Betis in August.

Flick said he was not worried about the prospect of facing a motivated Roque, adding: "I believe in my players. All the rivals have good players, forwards, defenders.

"You have to be careful and defend as well as possible, as a unit. Roque is doing very well. When I arrived, he wasn't in the best situation.

"I spoke to him and I felt that he was not happy, and I think it was the best decision for him to start in another team. For him it's good that he's doing better, feeling better. It's also good from a human point of view."