Barcelona, October 6, 2025 â FC Barcelonaâs dressing room has become a powder keg after their humiliating 4â1 defeat to Sevilla at the RamĂłn SĂĄnchez-PizjuĂĄn â a loss that not only handed Real Madrid the top spot in La Liga, but also ignited a crisis threatening to consume Hansi Flickâs project.
The breaking point came in the 75th minute when Robert Lewandowski missed a crucial penalty with Barça trailing 2â1 and still hoping for a comeback. Yet what has truly rocked the Catalan club is not the miss itself â his third failed penalty since joining in 2022 â but the explosive revelation that followed.
Speaking in an emotional exclusive interview with TV3 on Monday morning, the 37-year-old striker claimed that Flick confronted him after the final whistle with words that left him âhumiliated.â
âI know I made a mistake missing the penalty, but what Hansi said to me afterward is something I will never accept from any coach,â Lewandowski admitted, his voice breaking. âHe told me, âYouâre too old for this club, Lewy. You canât handle pressure anymore â itâs time to retire and make way for the young players.â I felt crushed, as if 15 years of European titles meant nothing.â
Lewandowskiâs confession exploded across social media, where the hashtag #FlickOut surpassed half a million mentions within hours. Sources close to the dressing room, speaking anonymously, confirmed that the confrontation took place in the tunnel â out of view of the cameras but within earshot of teammates including Pedri and Marcus Rashford, who had scored Barcelonaâs only goal late in the first half.
âLewy came storming out, furious, slamming his locker. Flick followed him and said those words â thinking it was just a private moment of tough love,â one source revealed.
Since his arrival in the summer of 2024, Flick has been known for his uncompromising standards. After the defeat, he hinted at frustration in his post-match press conference:
âWe made serious mistakes tonight. Not everyone is performing at the level this club demands. We need quality â not excuses.â
But few expected such direct criticism to be aimed at the clubâs star striker â now Barçaâs all-time top scorer with 102 goals in three seasons.
From kickoff, the match was a nightmare. MatĂas Almeydaâs revitalized Sevilla struck early: a controversial penalty against Ronald AraĂşjo in the 10th minute, coolly converted by former Barça man Alexis SĂĄnchez, and a thunderous strike from Isaac Romero in the 36th to make it 2â0. Rashford â on loan from Manchester United and one of the seasonâs revelations with five goals â pulled one back in stoppage time with a stunning volley.
Barcelona pushed hard after the break, with Flick introducing Alejandro Balde and Eric GarcĂa to spark a reaction. Pedri hit the post, GarcĂaâs header rattled the crossbar â but fortune deserted them. Then came the fateful moment in the 75th minute: a clumsy foul by Januzaj gave Lewandowski the chance to level the score. His signature slow run-up betrayed him â the shot clipped the outside of the post, and the opportunity was gone.
âI missed out of overconfidence, I admit it,â Lewandowski said afterward. âBut Flickâs words⌠they broke me.â
Sevilla made Barça pay, striking twice late on â Carmona on the counter in the 88th minute and Adams deep into stoppage time â to seal a famous 4â1 victory, their first home win over Barcelona at the PizjuĂĄn in a decade. Flick, visibly exasperated, covered his face as the miss went wide, later saying only:
âWe tried everything, but we couldnât find solutions. Our errors in buildup play cost us dearly.â
Now, as the international break begins, tension at Camp Nou is boiling over. Pedri publicly defended his captain:
âLewy is our leader and our example. No one is finished at 37 when theyâre still scoring 30 goals a season.â
Club president Joan Laporta has called emergency meetings as the team slips to second place with 19 points after eight matches. Reports suggest Flick could even bench Lewandowski for Novemberâs ClĂĄsico, while others hint that Saudi clubs have already inquired about a potential January move.
The fanbase is deeply divided. Social media is flooded with memes of the missed penalty and chants demanding Flickâs resignation. One viral post read:
âIf this is true, Flick must go â no one disrespects a legend like Lewy.â
For his part, Lewandowski fired back with a pointed comment:
âIâve won everything with managers like Guardiola and Nagelsmann. Flick is a good coach, but respect is non-negotiable. Iâll come back stronger â with or without him.â
The question now looms: can Flick survive this storm, or is his Barcelona already beginning to unravel? With a tense FIFA break ahead and uncertainty in the air, one thing is clear â Lewandowskiâs words have shaken Camp Nou to its core. The fans demand answers, not excuses.