Flick justifies Levante's goal and confirms his happiness with Barcelona's performance, and Carrick questions the decision of Haaland's goal in the Manchester derby.

German Hansi Flick, coach of Barcelona, ​​expressed his happiness with the great victory achieved by the team over Levante, 4-2, on Sunday, in the fifth round of the Spanish Football League.

Flick said in statements after the match: “We started very well, but we retreated a little. We needed to play more calmly. The pitch was not in ideal condition and was very dry.”

Regarding Levante’s first goal, Flick said: “I bear responsibility for this goal. We wanted to make a change and Xavi Espart wanted that, but we decided to wait, but I am happy with our victory and that we started the match in a great way.”

Flick talked about the performance of his compatriot Karim Adeyemi, who scored Barcelona's fourth goal in the match.

Flick said: “I am not surprised by Adeyemi. When he is fully focused, he is very impressive, and this is what you should always do as a player.”

He added: “This is why we decided to sign him. I have known him for years, and I know what he can do. He is a special player and he must always show this.”

He continued: “He can never relax. He must look forward to moving forward, and this is what I want from him.”

Barcelona leads the Spanish League with 15 points, three points behind Real Madrid, which is in second place.

Michael Carrick, the coach of the Manchester United team, expressed his astonishment at the match referee awarding the goal of the Norwegian Erling Haaland, the Manchester City player, during the two teams’ match in the derby, but he rejected that this goal would cause the entire team to change the course of the current season.

Manchester City defied the numerical disadvantage and continued its wonderful start in the English Premier League this season, after achieving a valuable and well-deserved 1-0 victory over Manchester United, at the top of the fourth stage matches of the prestigious competition, at Old Trafford, the stronghold of the team nicknamed the “Red Devils.”

Manchester City, which played its first derby against United without Spanish coach Pep Guardiola in 10 years, suffered from a numerical deficiency in its ranks, following the controversial expulsion of its star Phil Foden in the 23rd minute, following a joint ball with Bruno Fernandes, the Manchester United player.

The only goal of the match came from Haaland in the 60th minute, as the match referee initially refused to count it on the grounds of offside when he received the pass from which the goal came, before changing his decision after reviewing the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) technology, which indicated that Argentine Enzo Fernandez, who was in an offside position, did not intervene while the Norwegian player scored the goal.

Carrick spoke about Haaland's goal in statements to Sky Sports after the match, where he said: “I am confused. We have established specific systems and procedures for matches; There are people in the control rooms who follow the screens to make such decisions.”

The English coach added: “What is really worrying is whether this is the current interpretation of football laws. If this is the prevailing concept of not interfering in the course of the game, then this worries me greatly. "It's a surprising explanation."

He added: “This decision will not change the course of the entire season, but it had a major impact on the course of the match. That decision was not in our hands today, as the responsibility falls on us to create opportunities and score goals after that.”

The United coach explained: “We had some opportunities, and of course the responsibility falls on us to exploit them, but decisive moments in matches like this have a big impact.”

Carrick stressed: “We performed well in many aspects, and we seemed to be developing and gradually imposing our control over the course of the game, and we also posed a clear threat. We will extract the positives from today’s match and move forward, but we will not get over the matter simply or without deep thought.”

Carrick concluded his speech by saying: “We could have created more opportunities, and this is something we have to deal with, but the opportunity was already there.” This is our second defeat since I took over, but we are a good team, and we will soon return to the path of victories.”

Manchester United, which has been unable to win the title since the 2012-2013 season, continued its disappointing start to the competition this season, after its score froze at 4 points in thirteenth place, after suffering two losses against one win and one draw.

Napoli recovered after three consecutive defeats in all competitions, beating its guest Bologna 1-0 on Sunday in the fourth stage of the Italian Football League.

Napoli owes its Slovakian midfielder Stanislav Lobotka, who scored the winning goal in the 66th minute at Diego Armando Maradona Stadium in southern Italy.

Napoli raised its score to six points in ninth place by achieving its second victory in the league, after the first over Genoa (2-0) in the opener, while Bologna’s score froze at one point from a draw and three defeats in seventeenth place.

Coach Massimiliano Allegri's team put an end to a series of three consecutive defeats domestically and in Europe, which came against Como (1-2) and Inter (2-3) in the last two stages of the league, and against England's Arsenal in the Champions League (0-1).

Referee Kevin Bonacina canceled a goal for Bologna headed by Belgian Artur Tiat due to offside, after returning to the video assistant referee (VAR).

Lobotka gave Napoli the winning points through outstanding teamwork and a series of passes between Giovanni Di Lorenzo, Belgian Kevin De Bruyne, and substitute Costantino Favasoli, who played a cross from the right side, and the Slovakian followed it with his right from the outskirts of the six-yard area to the goal (66).

Sunday's matches will conclude with Juventus hosting Sassuolo.