"The match was not the time to do anything stupid" - Barcelona star explains why Hansi Flick substituted him in Sevilla win

Barcelona midfielder Gavi has shed light on head coach Hansi Flick's decision to substitute him in their clash against Sevilla in LaLiga. The match ended in a 4-1 win for the Catalan club on Sunday, February 9, at Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan Stadium.

Barcelona opened their scoring with Robert Lewandowski's left-footed shot from close range just seven minutes into the clash with Iñigo Martínez's headed pass following a corner. Rubén Vargas found the equalizer for Sevilla in the next minute through an assist by Saúl Ñíguez.

Gavi suffered a head injury in Barcelona's 1-0 win against Deportivo Alavés in LaLiga on February 2. He returned to action against Sevilla after missing one game for the Blaugrana. However, the 20-year-old experienced physical discomfort in the first half and also received a first booking for a bad foul on Adrià Pedrosa in the 38th minute. He was subbed off by Fermín López at the beginning of the second half.

López took the lead for Barcelona with a header from close range right after coming off the bench, from an assist by Pedri in the 46th minute. Raphinha struck next, netting the Blaugrana's third goal with a right-footed shot after being set up by Pau Cubarsí in the 55th minute.

Barcelona were left with 10 men on the pitch following Fermín López's red card for a foul in the 62nd minute. Eric García netted the Catalan's fourth goal with a header from close range following a set-piece situation in the 89th minute.

While speaking to the media after the match, Gavi mentioned being happy with the win and also explained why Hansi Flick substituted him after the first half. He said (via Barca Blaugranes):

"We are very happy with the game. It is not easy with one less player and we have done very well. The result here is very good. I was in a lot of pain and the manager told me that I had a yellow card and that the match was not the time to do anything stupid. Everyone knows that referees don’t cut corners with me."

Gavi also praised Fermín López, who replaced him on the pitch, while highlighting Barcelona's focus on winning games. The Spanish midfielder said:

"Fermín really had a great game. He came on and decided the match. I’m very happy for him. I’ve already said that the league is very long. People already thought that we weren’t going to be there. We’re two points behind and this is a long way off. We have to keep going and win everything that’s left to win this championship, which is what we want.”

During his time on the pitch against Sevilla, Gavi had 21 touches and was involved in one key pass. He also won five ground duels and three aerial duels. The Spaniard has registered two goals and three assists in 22 appearances across competitions for Barcelona this season.

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Hansi Flick's analysis of Barcelona's 4-1 win against Sevilla in LaLiga

Hansi Flick has shared his thoughts on Barcelona's 4-1 win against Sevilla in LaLiga. While speaking in the post-match press conference, the German manager praised his squad's display, especially after they were down to 10 players on the pitch.

Flick said (via Barca Universal):

"I am very happy with the team’s performance. We played a good first half and in the second half we fought hard to win these three points. I’m happy with the way we played. The way we defended with a 4-4-1 was a good lesson for us, because it’s not the way we want to play, but the team did it very well. We scored the fourth goal from a set piece, so things went in the right direction."

Speaking about his team's performance in the last half hour of the game, Flick added:

"It was a different style of play than usual, but the players played very well. We defended very well, especially on the wings where they have very good players and we were able to deal with that well. I am very happy with the performance."

Barcelona maintained a ball possession of 59 percent against Sevilla while having six shots on target and three goalkeeper saves.