Barcelona secured an important 3-1 victory over Sevilla at the Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan to keep their perfect start to the season intact.
One of the biggest surprises from Hansi Flick last night, when the line-up emerged, was the decision to start Dominik Livakovic ahead of Wojciech Szczesny.
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This decision came days after Flick revealed that the Pole was the second-choice goalkeeper this season.
The German manager later revealed that the decision to start the Croatian was a one-off and not a sign of the pecking order.
Livakovic enjoyed a winning start to life as a Barça player, with the team securing a victory and him putting in a decent display.
Livakovic delighted with perfect Barça start
As quoted by Mundo Deportivo, the 31-year-old spoke about his happiness after making his Barça debut and how Dani Olmo helped him settle in.
“We have achieved a perfect start to the season and we have to continue like this,” Livakovic said.
Barcelona signed Livakovic to increase the depth and quality of the goalkeeping department. (Photo courtesy: FC Barcelona official website)
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“There was a good talk at half-time and the team responded in the best possible way. We showed that on the pitch.”
Raphinha‘s hat-trick naturally caught his attention.
“Congratulations to Raphinha, who scored a hat-trick, incredible,” the goalkeeper said, before describing the Brazilian as “the perfect striker because of the way he presses.”
Dani Olmo helping Livakovic settle
Livakovic also highlighted Dani Olmo’s role in making his first weeks at Barcelona easier. The pair already knew each other from their time together at Dinamo Zagreb.
“From the first day I’ve had Dani Olmo,” Livakovic said.
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“I played with him at Dinamo Zagreb six or seven years ago. It has been easy because they are young guys and it’s like a family. It’s very easy to adapt here.”
Dani Olmo helped Livakovic settle into life at Barcelona. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)
However, the Croatian has not been the only one helping him.
“Also the goalkeeping coach, Joan and Tek are fantastic guys. Tek spoke a lot with me today, and so did the coach. They have made my job easy,” he added.
By signing Livakovic, Barça significantly improved the depth they had available in the goalkeeping department.
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At 31, the Croatia international is very young for a goalkeeper and still has a few solid years ahead of him.
Both Szczesny and Livakovic know opportunities will be limited, with Joan Garcia the clear first choice, but it is always good to have back-ups of such quality.
With Joan expected to be back after the international break, Livakovic might have to wait longer for his next game in a Barça jersey, but his first outing was a largely positive one.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: Sports.yahoo.com
