There’s nothing like a well-timed loss.
Correct sooner than the worldwide break, FC Barcelona went to go to Precise Sociedad, all pomped up after tonkings of Bayern Munich and Precise Madrid, knocking 4 targets earlier each of them, an orgiastic exorcism that will solely be further full with lifeless demons and exultant clergy.
La Precise wasn’t . The least bit. The next 0-1 loss was attention-grabbing in one of the simplest ways that losses are further attention-grabbing than wins if folks wish to be taught one factor about what a workers desires and the way in which it options. Ending the match with zero targets and 0 footage on goal could also be considerably eloquent inside the “how a workers options” regard, nonetheless the third loss was merely as loads psychological as a result of the sooner two.
La pausa is a sort of goofy phrases that like others (tika taka, anyone?), will get sillier with overuse. However it’s associated proper right here, just because it was inside the totally different two losses this season, to Monaco and Osasuna.
Flick’s technique is dynamic, wanting to get on the opponent with working, pressing, passing and verticality. When an opponent decides to run at Flick’s workers with working, pressing, passing and verticality, uncommon points happen. Fairly than calming down, looking out for openings to make the most of, for the same causes working, pressing, passing and verticality make Barça prone, they flip the quantity as a lot as 12.
The result is head tennis in midfield, runners run amok, shock targets that aren’t the least bit gorgeous given the state of the match, and — this season so far — losses.
Lamine Yamal was absent, and his presence was sorely missed. Nonetheless Barça, being all the way down to 10 with Frenkie De Jong inside the XI nonetheless, had larger than ample horsepower to beat La Precise. So what occurred?
Flickball purchased out Flickballed. La Precise had faster, stronger, further aggressive players further eager to run themselves into the underside. And when indicators that such a precise issue was occurring, 4 items of latest legs had been subbed in, to allow them to take care of working, pressing and making the match frenetic in an unmanageable means.
The lone goal was simple to make clear, however it certainly goes previous Inaki Pena having all the distribution skills and nous of a drunken sailor at 3 a.m. on payday. His clearance was ridiculous, and on to a La Precise participant. He was feeling pressure even when there wasn’t pressure, and wished to solely get the ball out of there.
When it pinged correct once more at them, then to their forward who had been firing warning footage all through the Barça bow all match, Kounde wished to position a physique on him. He didn’t. That meant Cubarsi had no chance to make a play, and Pena’s shot stopping skills, when a participant has a passel of areas to position a ball, are even weaker than they normally are. And there was the aim that turned out to be the profitable goal.
Nobody ever acknowledged, “What’s the hurry, Bub?” Crosses to Lewandowski had been merely parried, La Precise purchased a hustling, diving participant in entrance of every in all probability dangerous cross. The one time that one thing good occurred for Barça obtained right here when De Jong did the one issue the workers wished any person, anyone to do: he made a run that tilted the La Precise press, resulting in a goal that principally wasn’t a goal because of the automated offside thingamabob.
That should have been high-quality, and shouldn’t have been ample to win, moreover that Barça stays to be psychologically prone, not inside the teeter-totter technique of earlier teams, the place the first little little bit of adversity turns them proper right into a darkish cloud of ineffectiveness. This workers needs to outdo people, needs to press to get outcomes. In chasing a match, it chases more durable and thus turns into rather more prone to an opponent much like La Precise who, for increased ending and selections inside the final third, would have had two or three further targets.
They ran Barça off the pitch on account of Barça made itself prone in attempting to run them off the pitch. It was humorous to take a look at in some methods on account of every weak level in Flick’s side was exacerbated. Balde appeared like a fullback on a merry-go-round, with no idea what to do with Take Kubo within the similar means opponents have no idea what to do with Lamine Yamal.
There isn’t a ball-carrying fullback to bypass that first line of the press, inside the trend of Pique or further ideally, Umtiti. So everybody has to do further work, discovering that sliver of a passing lane sooner than it’s jumped by an opponent, which makes the passes rushed, or relying upon the distribution of the keeper over distance, nonetheless in a maelstrom of a midfield, these prolonged balls merely fall to opponents, who go working the other method to press an out of stability Barça.
There aren’t wing runners, on account of wing runners need the ball to run onto, and the midfield is busy attempting to get the ball, working for its life, or chasing breaks that it may presumably’t catch.
Dani Olmo approaching supplied a brief breath of latest air sooner than the panic returned, and the match rushed to its inevitable end result.
Opponents are going to examine that match to hunt out what could also be found from it. And principally, what’s there to be found? It’s possible you’ll press the hell out of Barça, and once you’re lucky ample to capitalize on a mistake, it is a should to take care of pressing, to run your self into the underside.
Nonetheless ah, why didn’t Bayern and Precise Madrid try this exact same issue? Because of they’re too good. The facility, dedication and selflessness it takes to play a match like La Precise or Osasuna carried out isn’t inside the CV of excessive golf gear. Not these days. Their approaches are further commonplace, which allows Flickball to Flick.
Barça moreover desires a left once more who isn’t a big quantity, always leaving collaborating in space for opponents on account of Barça doesn’t have the other issue it desires, which can be mids who can run, stop breaks and defend. Pedri is a wonderful defender when he might be proactive, and the opponent isn’t working away from him as fast as he can. Then Pedri is just one different gradual dude chasing a ball he is under no circumstances going to catch.
When a workers is gradual and an opponent is collaborating in fast, it’s rather more essential to play with administration and tranquility. That didn’t happen.
“Nonetheless they scored a goal, it merely was incorrectly dominated offside.”
Then they didn’t ranking a goal. And that phantom goal doesn’t suggest they weren’t run off the pitch by an opponent who had further energy, was faster, stronger and had a larger match plan. Flick will, if he is half just about pretty much as good as all of us assume he is, sit the workers down and say, “That’s what occurred, proper right here’s how I really feel we should all the time keep that from occurring as soon as extra.”
There’ll probably be ample options for us to see if Flick’s workers is ready to finding out from its errors, on account of that La Precise technique goes to turn into a blueprint for the best strategy to play FC Barcelona, with or with out Lamine Yamal.