Barca manager bemoans sloppy defending after 4-4 draw

Barcelona manager Hansi Flick has criticised his side's defending and lack of concentration after Atletico Madrid fought back from two goals down to rescue a last-gasp 4-4 draw in the first leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final.

Flick said on Tuesday (local time) that conceding four goals should be unacceptable for a club like Barcelona and that his side must learn how to close out games properly.

"I have warned the players not to concede any chances," Flick told Spanish television station TVE.

"I'm disappointed with the result because it was good to see how we managed to fight back after conceding two goals early and, even after we opened a 4-2 lead, we created a lot of chances.

"But it was all in vain because in the last few minutes we let them back into it.

"We had chances to go to the second leg with an advantage. We will have to talk a lot in the changing room about the goals we conceded.

"We have to correct the mistakes. The team is very young, there is a lot of room for improvement, but that is no excuse. They scored four goals against us and it's just too much for our standards."

Flick praised Atletico's resilience and said that there were positives he could take from his side's performance, mainly in attack.

"I am frustrated but still happy with many things I saw in the game. But the conceded goals can't happen," Flick said.

"At least, I think the fans enjoyed it because it was a battle."

Atletico stunned the home side early on, taking a two-goal lead with Julian Alvarez opening the scoring inside the first minute and Antoine Griezmann extending their advantage five minutes later.

However, Barcelona fought back with goals by Pedri in the 19th minute and Pau Cubarsi in the 21st, before taking the lead through Inigo Martinez's header from a corner in the 41st minute.

Barca took control of proceedings and Robert Lewandowski made it 4-2 with a tap-in from close range after great individual work by Lamine Yamal in the 74th minute.

Atletico struck back through Marcos Llorente in the 84th minute, while another goal on the counter by Alexander Sorloth in the third minute of stoppage time left it all square ahead of the return encounter in the Spanish capital on April 2.

"That was just crazy," Atletico forward Alvarez told Spanish station Movistar Plus.