There’s nothing like a well-timed loss.
Proper earlier than the worldwide break, FC Barcelona went to go to Actual Sociedad, all pomped up after tonkings of Bayern Munich and Actual Madrid, knocking 4 targets previous every of them, an orgiastic exorcism that would solely be extra full with lifeless demons and exultant clergy.
La Actual wasn’t . In any respect. The following 0-1 loss was attention-grabbing in the best way that losses are extra attention-grabbing than wins if people want to be taught one thing about what a staff wants and the way it features. Ending the match with zero targets and 0 pictures on purpose may be somewhat eloquent within the “how a staff features” regard, however the third loss was simply as a lot psychological because the earlier two.
La pausa is a type of goofy phrases that like others (tika taka, anybody?), will get sillier with overuse. Nevertheless it’s related right here, simply because it was within the different two losses this season, to Monaco and Osasuna.
Flick’s strategy is dynamic, desirous to get on the opponent with operating, urgent, passing and verticality. When an opponent decides to run at Flick’s staff with operating, urgent, passing and verticality, unusual issues occur. Reasonably than calming down, on the lookout for openings to take advantage of, for a similar causes operating, urgent, passing and verticality make Barça susceptible, they flip the amount as much as 12.
The result’s head tennis in midfield, runners run amok, shock targets that aren’t in any respect stunning given the state of the match, and — this season up to now — losses.
Lamine Yamal was absent, and his presence was sorely missed. However Barça, being down to 10 with Frenkie De Jong within the XI however, had greater than sufficient horsepower to beat La Actual. So what occurred?
Flickball bought out Flickballed. La Actual had quicker, stronger, extra aggressive gamers extra keen to run themselves into the bottom. And when indicators that such a exact factor was occurring, 4 units of recent legs had been subbed in, to permit them to maintain operating, urgent and making the match frenetic in an unmanageable means.
The lone purpose was straightforward to clarify, but it surely goes past Inaki Pena having all of the distribution abilities and nous of a drunken sailor at 3 a.m. on payday. His clearance was ridiculous, and on to a La Actual participant. He was feeling strain even when there wasn’t strain, and wished to only get the ball out of there.
When it pinged proper again at them, then to their ahead who had been firing warning pictures throughout the Barça bow all match, Kounde wanted to place a physique on him. He didn’t. That meant Cubarsi had no likelihood to make a play, and Pena’s shot stopping abilities, when a participant has a passel of locations to place a ball, are even weaker than they usually are. And there was the purpose that turned out to be the successful purpose.
No one ever stated, “What’s the hurry, Bub?” Crosses to Lewandowski had been simply parried, La Actual bought a hustling, diving participant in entrance of each probably harmful cross. The one time that something good occurred for Barça got here when De Jong did the one factor the staff wanted somebody, anybody to do: he made a run that tilted the La Actual press, leading to a purpose that basically wasn’t a purpose due to the automated offside thingamabob.
That ought to have been high-quality, and shouldn’t have been sufficient to win, besides that Barça remains to be psychologically susceptible, not within the teeter-totter means of previous groups, the place the primary little bit of adversity turns them right into a darkish cloud of ineffectiveness. This staff desires to outdo individuals, desires to press to get outcomes. In chasing a match, it chases tougher and thus turns into much more susceptible to an opponent similar to La Actual who, for higher ending and choices within the ultimate third, would have had two or three extra targets.
They ran Barça off the pitch as a result of Barça made itself susceptible in making an attempt to run them off the pitch. It was humorous to look at in some ways as a result of each weak point in Flick’s facet was exacerbated. Balde appeared like a fullback on a merry-go-round, with no concept what to do with Take Kubo in the identical means opponents do not know what to do with Lamine Yamal.
There isn’t a ball-carrying fullback to bypass that first line of the press, within the fashion of Pique or extra ideally, Umtiti. So everyone has to do extra work, discovering that sliver of a passing lane earlier than it’s jumped by an opponent, which makes the passes rushed, or relying upon the distribution of the keeper over distance, however in a maelstrom of a midfield, these lengthy balls simply fall to opponents, who go operating the opposite approach to press an out of stability Barça.
There aren’t wing runners, as a result of wing runners want the ball to run onto, and the midfield is busy making an attempt to get the ball, operating for its life, or chasing breaks that it could possibly’t catch.
Dani Olmo approaching offered a short breath of recent air earlier than the panic returned, and the match rushed to its inevitable outcome.
Opponents are going to check that match to seek out what may be discovered from it. And basically, what’s there to be discovered? You may press the hell out of Barça, and when you’re fortunate sufficient to capitalize on a mistake, it’s a must to maintain urgent, to run your self into the bottom.
However ah, why didn’t Bayern and Actual Madrid do that very same factor? As a result of they’re too good. The power, dedication and selflessness it takes to play a match like La Actual or Osasuna performed isn’t within the CV of high golf equipment. Not nowadays. Their approaches are extra standard, which permits Flickball to Flick.
Barça additionally wants a left again who isn’t a large number, constantly leaving taking part in area for opponents as a result of Barça doesn’t have the opposite factor it wants, that are mids who can run, cease breaks and defend. Pedri is an excellent defender when he could be proactive, and the opponent isn’t operating away from him as quick as he can. Then Pedri is simply one other gradual dude chasing a ball he’s by no means going to catch.
When a staff is gradual and an opponent is taking part in quick, it’s much more crucial to play with management and quietness. That didn’t occur.
“However they scored a purpose, it simply was incorrectly dominated offside.”
Then they didn’t rating a purpose. And that phantom purpose doesn’t imply they weren’t run off the pitch by an opponent who had extra power, was quicker, stronger and had a greater match plan. Flick will, if he’s half pretty much as good as all of us assume he’s, sit the staff down and say, “That is what occurred, right here’s how I feel we must always maintain that from occurring once more.”
There will likely be ample alternatives for us to see if Flick’s staff is able to studying from its errors, as a result of that La Actual strategy goes to turn out to be a blueprint for the right way to play FC Barcelona, with or with out Lamine Yamal.