Fuss about expulsion
Yellow-red for Flick: Barça coach misses Clásico
October 19, 2025 – 12:43 p.mReading time: 2 minutes
The game against Girona gets heated in the final phase. In the spotlight: the German coach of the Catalans. His behavior has consequences.
FC Barcelona moved to the top of the Spanish league for the time being with a last-minute goal – but the 2-1 (1-1) win against FC Girona came at a high price: because of a yellow-red card, coach Hansi Flick will only sit in the stands at the Clásico against Real Madrid next Sunday.
Barça defender Ronald Araújo secured the Catalans a narrow home win in the third minute of stoppage time. Pedri had previously taken the lead for the defending champions (13th), but it didn’t last long. Just seven minutes later, former Dortmund player Axel Witsel equalized for Girona – the former BVB professional scored to make it 1-1.
With the win, Barça takes the lead in the table, at least until Sunday. The club recently suffered two defeats – in the Champions League against Paris Saint-Germain and in the league against Sevilla FC – and played against Girona without several regulars. Among other things, striker Robert Lewandowski was missing due to injury.
Even before the late winning goal, Flick caused a stir: the 60-year-old was sent off to the stands with a yellow-red card in the final phase for complaining. This means he will not be allowed to stand on the sidelines in the duel with arch-rivals Real next Sunday. After the game, Flick emphasized that his gestures were not directed at anyone – not even at the referee team. “Football is emotion,” explained the coach. He just wanted to motivate his team.
Immediately after kick-off, the game stopped completely for around 15 seconds – players from both teams initially refused to take any action on the pitch. With this silent protest, FC Barcelona and FC Girona sent a clear signal against a controversial decision by league officials. The background is the announcement that Barça will play its away game against Villarreal FC on December 20th not in Spain, but in Miami. The decision sparked widespread criticism last week – both from fan camps and from several clubs in the league.
The players from Real Oviedo and Espanyol Barcelona had already protested in the same way on Friday evening. At the game in the Olympic Stadium in Barcelona, Hansi Flick’s team also joined in the show of discontent.