The Croatian saw Flick turn to Szczęsny following Joan García's injury against Racing Santander, and the head coach subsequently confirmed in his post-match press conference that the Pole remains his second-choice goalkeeper.
"We all make mistakes. When a goalkeeper makes a mistake, it usually ends up in a goal. Next time he'll have to react better, but that's football. Szczęsny is still our second goalkeeper," Flick said after the match.
The decision has raised questions in Croatia over whether Livaković made the right call in joining Barcelona. Croatian outlet Index.hr posed the question directly: "Such a specific and unusual situation had arisen that it should have opened an opportunity for the back-up goalkeeper.
The starter got injured, but Livaković still wasn't involved in the plans regardless. At that point, you really have to ask yourself: what did Livaković need this for?"
The concern extends beyond his club role to the potential impact on his standing with the Croatian national team, for whom he is the regular starting goalkeeper. A lack of game time at Barcelona risks leaving him short of match sharpness heading into international fixtures.
"If Livaković really does remain outside Barça's plans, which is realistic to expect given the current hierarchy, Croatia will very quickly lose the competitive form of their most reliable option. They will then have to rely on a goalkeeper who isn't playing, or turn to other solutions," Index.hr argued.
Barcelona are, however, only a handful of matches into the season, with plenty still to play for. The hierarchy in goal could yet shift, and next week's match against Sevilla is likely to prove particularly telling — especially if Joan García is not fit in time and Flick again has to choose between Szczęsny and Livaković to fill the gap in his starting line-up.
Livaković joined Barcelona from Fenerbahçe this summer for a fee in the region of €4 million, arriving with a reputation built on his performances for Croatia at recent World Cups.
His arrival came alongside Marc-André ter Stegen's loan departure to Ajax, but Livaković was signed in the knowledge he would begin the season below both Joan García and Szczęsny in the pecking order, a hierarchy that has left the Croatian further down the pecking order than many inside the club anticipated when he signed.