Yeah, looks like that squad needs gutting which they can’t do due to their financial issues.
At least with Utd you can point to Bruno, Ronaldo, Sancho, Rashford , Greenwood etc and build some sort of side out of it
Barcelona: Charged with corruption .... again!
- Thread starter The Boy
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At least with Utd you can point to Bruno, Ronaldo, Sancho, Rashford , Greenwood etc and build some sort of side out of it
Xavi está al volante
Lucky fecker to have got away from Espanyol with a win then not have Benfica tap that goal in at the end.
Are they going to be stuck in their own ex legend manager nightmare?
They’ll be fine. Just suffering with a lack of a proper clinical striker. Memphis is good but he’s not that.
Played pretty well in large parts against a Benfica side that slapped them last time. Also much better than against Espanyol.
Played pretty well in large parts against a Benfica side that slapped them last time. Also much better than against Espanyol.
They would for sure but banking on them being healthy poses a significant risk considering respective injury histories. I guess Xavi should focus on making a cohesive unit and improving the plethora of young midfielders he has at his disposal and at least try to get someone even on loan to improve attacking options.
I'm still baffled by Luke De Jong, as bad as the situation is surely they could've found someone more suited to their style of play? At this point if I was a Barcelona fan I'd genuinely despair at the fact Braithwaite is injured, if someone suggested such a scenario to me a couple of years ago I'd have probably advised him to get his mental health checked out.
Xavi has been coach for a week
Today Barcelona played at a great level. The midfield is spectacular even without Pedri. Gavi and Nico spectacular, they have a great future
The problem for the team is that it lacks players with goals. Without Fati and Agüero the problem is greater.
Depay will score goals for the Netherlands but with Barcelona he does everything wrong.
Last year Bayern played their last game with substitutes, it is the only way to win. If we play the Europa League is what we deserve, today is the time to rebuild.
The problem for the team is that it lacks players with goals. Without Fati and Agüero the problem is greater.
Depay will score goals for the Netherlands but with Barcelona he does everything wrong.
Last year Bayern played their last game with substitutes, it is the only way to win. If we play the Europa League is what we deserve, today is the time to rebuild.
This season should be transitional for Barca. Xavi needs time to implement his style. Next season is the one that people should judge him.
Xavi fuera de aquí!
With that draw today they need something away to Bayern or there most likely out
It sounds like any spanish supporter for almost a decade "great quality, great passes, talent etc." but eventually it just doesn't work. The problem is far deeper than just having a goal scorer, the teams lacks verticality and Xavi is aware of that, that's why he decided to go for this pretty extreme strategy at the end of the game called "give the ball to Dembele at all cost", because at one point you need player that will make differences and have more to offer than pretty passes. Of course these young players have talent, but when you play with 6-7 midfielders, it's no surprise you're going to have good possessions in this area, but that's just not how you score goals.
If they need goals they can have Martial off us for De Jong
Today the team pressed well, had intensity, found lines of passes and managed to be vertical through the center, sometimes too much. The wingers were not vertical because on one side was Gavi and another Demir.
Barcelona lacks goals and wingers.
Xavi has only been a week and a big change was seen. Obviously you will need time and sign some player.
Where do we have to sign? You will also have Luuk well rested
People also see change because they want to. Remember Koeman ball? I'm obviously not judging Xavi's work but it's a new manager, it'll often look a bit different, sometimes it lasts, sometimes it doesn't. Might be because he gives good instrucitons, might be because it's a fresh start for some, we'll only know in a couple of months.
Intensity is a good exemple a what a new manager brings without doing much, it's pretty obvious Koeman also wanted intensity but the players were to psychologically drained to do it, we'll see how it goes after a few games under Xavi especially if they hit a rough patch again.
Xavi is completely new at Barcelona and he needs time to work.
People get very impatient these days. Give him time.
People get very impatient these days. Give him time.
Worked 2 time in 100 yrs (guardiola and zidane)
You need experience and a professional cv as a manager with trophies achieved before getting that kind of job
You need experience and a professional cv as a manager with trophies achieved before getting that kind of job
2 goals in 5 games yet they're still second in their CL group 
We can only make assumptions because we don't know what the future holds. That's the interesting thing, if we had to wait months to comment, threads about players or coaches would not make sense.
Talking about the match if there were changes.
Wingers very wide and deep to fix the fullbacks and leave spaces for the midfielders, high pressure in high block, lines together both in attack and defense, fast ball circulation and something else
There were also great defects especially in decision making, Depay and Alba were not very successful.
Yes, new coach and very young players. With this mixture there will be many irregular games but it is the price to pay for past mistakes
By that logic no point hiring any manager as most managers fail
2 goals in 5 games yet they're still second in their CL group
That means nothing, they have to beat Bayern away. They have no chance. They have not won a big game in like 3 years or something.
Reckon they will do it.
I'm either cynical or in denial... but I just have a hard time believing that, in their worst crisis in ages, and after ten years of producing nothing in their youth setup, Barcelona will be saved by having like 5 'future greats' between 17-19 years of age.
Perhaps. But United has always had a healthy economy while Barcelona has a crippling debt that hasn't been properly addressed yet.
If I was Barca I'd try and get Lingard on a free. He has that pace they're lacking, can score a goal and is in his prime. The last thing they need is more teenagers and 33y olds.
No time for sentiment, sack him.
Joking
Joking
Gavi, Pedri and Fatso do look incredible talents though. We’ve seen at united converting great talents into actual first class footballers doesn’t always work out.
Bayern has nothing to play for, is dealing with quarantine issues and will probably field a team of backups. Barca has a good chance if the Bayern starters don’t want to set (another) example.
We were ahead only for 74 mins and we are finishing top of the group. 1 game left2 goals in 5 games yet they're still second in their CL group
They went from Messi, Suarez, Griezmann to what? How are they fine?
I played football for the regional team in my part of the country in my youth, I reckon I can still do a job for this version of Barcelona. Give me a call Xavi.
They went from this cheatcode of a team to Everton in 6 years.
Josep Maria Bartomeu destroyed this.
Josep Maria Bartomeu destroyed this.
He said we'll be fine, not that we're okay now.
Barcelona is in the process of returning to a path from which they should never have left.
With Xavi in just one week you can already see a clear idea. Now to work and patience.
In just 3 months it has gone from Barcelona being the new Milan, and it would take 10 years to be a competitive team to Barcelona selling De Jong to finance new signings because Barcelona have many talented players in the midfield.
Barcelona has a team with a lot of young talent and some positions that need to be filled with signings.
If the signings perform well and the youngsters continue to evolve as now Barcelona will be competitive soon, otherwise it will cost more money and time.
fair enough. title been in Madrid for 3 years now
They're really young, though.We're talking about talented midfielders who are like 17-19 years old.
Injuries to strikers will make it very difficult for Xavi. Very dubious penalty v Espanyol and got lucky at the end yesterday even if they had lots of chances first.
Surely will get battered in Munich and goal difference in La Liga is showing their level currently. Will struggle for top 4. If those two things come to pass, the financial side will continue to be very difficult. Need CL monies for a quick bounce back.
Surely will get battered in Munich and goal difference in La Liga is showing their level currently. Will struggle for top 4. If those two things come to pass, the financial side will continue to be very difficult. Need CL monies for a quick bounce back.
Yeah, you're right. Teams without good peak players rarely do well. Nico, Pedri, Gavi, Fati, Demir, Garcia, Dest, Araújo - a few years off their peak. Alba, Busquets, Pique - past their peak.
Of their peak players - Frenkie De Jong (great but can't play in his best position because of Busquets), Ter Stegen (good but a goalkeeper), Depay (good but not good enough to be star forward for Barcelona), Coutinho (lost his game completely), Luuk De Jong (not good enough), Dembele (flaky and injury worry).