Raphinha failed to make the starting lineup for the match against Valencia, solely because he arrived late for the morning warm-up training. Hansi Flick has never let up on his demands for the team, and he has been particularly strict with the players during the early stages of this season.
It is reported that Raphinha was only on the bench for the Valencia clash precisely because he turned up late for the morning warm-up session on the day of the game.
In Flick’s view, unpunctuality from players is an absolutely intolerable offense. He believes such behavior shows disrespect to other team members, so whenever a player violates this rule, he does not hesitate to take disciplinary action.
In this match, Barcelona’s attack was composed of Fermín López, Ferran Torres, and Marcus Rashford. Although Raphinha had long been a regular in Flick’s starting lineup, the manager has always treated everyone equally when it comes to disciplinary matters. Regardless of a player’s seniority or age, if their actions deviate from the team’s established code of conduct, he will resolutely remove them from the starting eleven.
Last season, players such as Iñaki Peña and Jules Koundé already experienced Flick’s strict disciplinary approach. During his coaching tenure in Germany—whether leading the Germany national team or managing Bayern Munich—he also imposed extremely strict requirements on players’ punctuality.
