Barcelona manager Hansi Flick indicated that Eric Garcia’s red card in the 10th minute significantly affected his team’s performance in their 2-1 loss to Monaco in the Champions League on Thursday.
Monaco made a surprising return to the Champions League with a 2-1 victory over Barcelona on home turf.
The Ligue 1 club had not participated in the competition for five years, but they took the lead through Maghnes Akliouche after Barcelona were reduced to 10 players following Garcia’s red card.
Lamine Yamal then scored the equalizer for the LaLiga giants, but George Ilenikhena secured the winning goal for Monaco.
In his post-match interview, Flick acknowledged that Garcia’s red card “completely changed the game.”
He admitted, “Monaco deserved the win. We need to reflect on what happened, but despite our disappointment, we should be proud. Now, our focus shifts to Sunday’s challenge.”
