That was classic Busquets. I love Sergi in that system.
La Liga 2019/20
- Thread starter carvajal
- Start date
Once Barca have De Jong and hopefully Arthur back in there regularly, with the youth players coming in frequently, there should be a lot more verve and possession football in the middle again.
Was also a relief to de Barca with a lead in the last ten minutes and not playing hyper defensive and panicking. They were actually looking for a second goal, something you rarely saw from Valverde
It’s only one game, but again, a step in the right direction
It’s only one game, but again, a step in the right direction
Plenty of decent signs in general, Granada made it very hard, a well drilled team. But lots of possession, winning back the loose balls, some slick passing triangles. There's life in this squad yet, haha.
See how it works away from home. Everyone knows Barca have Liverpool like powers on their own turf.
Very true
looks like under Valverde it was so depressing that fans are now happy with 1-0 win against ten men Granada 
another goal with his right for Messi + Puig looked good too. Griez really works hard, but like I've said earlier in season, it really wouldn't surprise me if he never came close to his numbers from Atletico days, which is ironic in a way. I guess he'll play less on a wing now that Suarez is injured so he'll start to score more as well.
another goal with his right for Messi + Puig looked good too. Griez really works hard, but like I've said earlier in season, it really wouldn't surprise me if he never came close to his numbers from Atletico days, which is ironic in a way. I guess he'll play less on a wing now that Suarez is injured so he'll start to score more as well.looks like under Valverde it was so depressing that fans are now happy with 1-0 win against ten men Granada
Seeing the score line is missing the point, no Suarez or FDJ.
I don’t think the new manager is the greatest thing since sliced bread, but the play style is very different from Valverde and we actually looked a lot more like Barcelona than we had in some time. Final third needs some work but should’ve won 3-1.
looks like under Valverde it was so depressing that fans are now happy with 1-0 win against ten men Granada
1,005 passes.
It's the style, approach and aesthetic that Barça fans are happy about. Sure, 1-0 is still only 1-0, but there's a larger point here; namely that better general performances yield greater consistent scorelines in the long run. It's so important that Barça start playing well consistently, first and foremost. It's not easy for a team to never play tiki-taka, and then all of a sudden do it as well as they did last night. The only two players acquainted with that way of playing was Messi and Busquets; the latter coincidentally had his best game in over three years. Coincidence? probably not. De Jong, Arthur and Puig all get more minutes together, and you've got real energy and mobility to play through any press and to be able to relentlessly press themselves.
Ok, apparently this is a thing....
Barça vs. Grenada set the record for most attempted passes in Barcelona history, and even more incredible, the 2nd most attempted passes of all time from any team in history.
Barça vs. Grenada set the record for most attempted passes in Barcelona history, and even more incredible, the 2nd most attempted passes of all time from any team in history.
And at the end of the day it took a Messi goal against 10 men to open the can. You can admire the methodology but at the end of the day, it’s scoring that counts. Barca purists probably would frown at the goal that Liverpool scored against us with Alisson assisting Salah with a goal kick.
Yes, it took Messi to score a goal however we could've scored 4 or 5 easily while we only conceded one dangerous shot on our target. If you'd have followed us this season you would see what a huge problem this has been. We would be hard pressed to keep a clean sheet against anyone, even against the teams from the lower half of the table. Under Valverde we'd usually try to sit back with a goal advantage, concede possession to the opponents trying to keep it tight at the back, and while it's a legitimate tactic, we really don't have the players to defend in a low block and it constantly backfired. So our best form of defence is still keeping possession of the ball, limit the amount of passing errors and fast counter press after losing the ball, none of which were done under Valverde but were clear to see from the first match under Setien.
Regarding chance creation, it wasn't really a huge problem the other night, it's that the biggest 2 fell at the feet of 17 yo Ansu Fati who is a talented lad but still has ways to go. You do have to take into consideration that this is is the first match under a new manager, who only had a week to train the squad and asses its strengths and weaknesses. Also Suarez, De Jong were out and Arthur is barely back from an injury. Things will improve on that front I'm sure.
As for your second point about the assist from the keeper, why would you say that? Stegen had 2 similar assists this season alone and I didn't see any fan on the Barca boards frowning. Quite on the contrary it was the highlight of the match for most of us despite Messi doing his usual routine.
Spoken like someone who didn’t watch the game at all.
As a matter of fact I did watch it. I don’t get why you Barsa fans get so salty and immediately police and come hard on to those who comment on the club. It’s like a cult.
You didn't watch the game, then make something up to make Barcelona fans seem like a close minded cult and when you get called out for spouting your nonsense you call them "like a cult" because they corrected you?
Jesus, the double standards int his forum are legendary at times
There are PLENTY of reasons to criticize Barca this season, but quite bizarre to single that game out considering that teams who sit on the low block (like the way sheffield stifled City for example) happens all the time when a hyper defensive team goes up against a big squad.
Granada were on top of the table a month ago or so, and have come back down to earth. If they were playing an open game they would've been slaughtered. They parked the bus for 90 minutes. What was important to take away from the game was the chances Barca created. Yes, the finishing in the final third could've been better. But considering how dire Barca looked under Valverde, it was actually a fun game to watch (maybe not for everyone, as Barca had 85% possession) and Barca had more shots on target in the first half than they usually do in 180 minutes on average under Valverde.
I'm not saying the treble is coming home, or that the new manager deserves a ten year deal. I'm just saying there wasn't a whole lot to be miffed by in that match, as Barca actually looked far more lively and played with much more speed than we are used to seeing. The scoreline was incredibly flattering to Granada. It happens in football.
Bingo
Ibiza-Elvissa 1-0 Barcelona at half time
Possession: 20%-80%
Shots: 5-1
What the hell
Why are they playing with one centreback in a 3 defenders system?
Possession: 20%-80%
Shots: 5-1
What the hell
Why are they playing with one centreback in a 3 defenders system?
I’ve been watching it because I stupidly bet on Barca. They’ve done absolutely nothing.
Dunno where to put this and ceebs making another thread for it, but Ibiza are currently beating Barcelona in the Copa Del Rey
Edit: oh, it's already mentioned in here
Edit: oh, it's already mentioned in here
If Ibiza win theres gonna be a party.
In the Mediterranean Sea.
In the Mediterranean Sea.
Griezmann makes it 1-1, great pass by De Jong
Imagine going to Ibiza away
Know plenty of people that live there and some that have gone, including M'anu who's mentioned in this article about it https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/51157181Imagine going to Ibiza away
The island is pretty quiet in winter.
Bugger
Ibiza-Elvissa 1-0 Barcelona at half time
Possession: 20%-80%
Shots: 5-1
What the hell
The usual Setienball.
I think 400 something passes in 45 minutes as well, which only got to show how useless the "WOWSERS 1000 passes" statistic is. Mostly between the defenders.
We averaged 700 passes per game with Valverde, people (fans and media) just lack perspective and a middle ground.
Who cares if we do 700 passes with most of them being done after 3/4 touches from our midfielders or 1000 passes with most being done at the first touch?. Not much, but we're just passing the ball around because that's how this team is supposed to defend with players like Busquets or Rakitic on the pitch, they're not good defenders in a two way game, same could be said for Arthur, that's why we suffered a lot in key games, because intensity killed our team and exposed huge gaps in our defense.
But even if we're averaging a lot of dull passes, the team already tries to push further into the final third and player movement seems more fluid that the last year with Valverde, we're still playing bad football right now, but there's signs that this manager wants to defend 20 meters higher in the pitch, play more time in the final third and try to play a better football.
Obviously, he's far from it, and trying to do something doesn't mean actually achieving it, but he gets attacked with "Setienball" a lot because of what happened to him at the end of his Betis spell, yet his team scored 133 goals over 94 games, Las Palmas scored 109 in 78, those are good numbers for teams that play in the mid/relegation zone. At the end of his spell with Betis he had few options, teams closed up on them and the goals stopped coming, but that's something every manager will face a couple times in their career.
When I watched Barca in its absolute prime under Pep I always felt that this style is not sustainable. The combination of not only one but 2 central midfielders who are all-time great final ball deliverers, yet with the ability to never lose the ball and control the game like deep-lying playmakers, one of them being an all-time great dribbling midfielder on top of it, with arguably THE all-time great player upfront who can do everything in the final third, with an all-time great rightback who passes the ball better than most central midfielders, accompanied by 6 other world class players and a relentless coach who demands maximum effort every single game -- and even then the gameplan turned ineffective many times once opponents simply put men behind the ball and countered with intensity and physicality like Inter, Chelsea or Madrid under Mourinho. Then it looked like this:
Now on top of the offensive difficulties against deep blocks with such a style Barca also don't have the quality on the ball anymore to resist the high press defensively nor the workrate upfront to play any sort of consistent pressing game on their own. It's practically impossible with Messi. There is no way you can press with 9 outfield players. Maybe against Granada at home. I see Setien is already experimenting with a 3 men backline much like Luis Enrique at the end of his tenure.
To make a point: I believe this is the last chapter in Barca's decline: The "acceptance". Under Setien people will finally realize it's not possible to be THAT Barca anymore while under Valverde many still thought all it takes is another coach to go back to the roots and turn De Jong into new Iniesta.
Now on top of the offensive difficulties against deep blocks with such a style Barca also don't have the quality on the ball anymore to resist the high press defensively nor the workrate upfront to play any sort of consistent pressing game on their own. It's practically impossible with Messi. There is no way you can press with 9 outfield players. Maybe against Granada at home. I see Setien is already experimenting with a 3 men backline much like Luis Enrique at the end of his tenure.
To make a point: I believe this is the last chapter in Barca's decline: The "acceptance". Under Setien people will finally realize it's not possible to be THAT Barca anymore while under Valverde many still thought all it takes is another coach to go back to the roots and turn De Jong into new Iniesta.
I still think the most spectacular thing about Pep's Barca wasn't really their technical ability but their press, they always won the ball back fast. Xavi completely controlled the tempo of the game on the ball but people forget he used to run 12kms per game frequently, Iniesta, Pedro, Villa and even Messi all pressed and won the ball back in seconds.
They can't replicate that now with Suarez and Messi and by not doing it they'll always be exposed defensively with this group of players. I still think Valverde had the right idea of how this group of players should set up and that a more adventurous style won't be successful without signing the right players to fit that style. I think Setien can get Barca back to the standard they want to be at but I really don't believe they'll be patient enough with him.
They can't replicate that now with Suarez and Messi and by not doing it they'll always be exposed defensively with this group of players. I still think Valverde had the right idea of how this group of players should set up and that a more adventurous style won't be successful without signing the right players to fit that style. I think Setien can get Barca back to the standard they want to be at but I really don't believe they'll be patient enough with him.
Of course they can go back to being THAT barca and of course it's sustainable, otherwise Guardiola wouldn't have been able to do it at Bayern and City
I don't think THIS barca can be THAT barca though, not with their current players. Unless they bench Suarez. As Peyroteo correctly stated, the key of THAT barca was the counterpressing
I don't think THIS barca can be THAT barca though, not with their current players. Unless they bench Suarez. As Peyroteo correctly stated, the key of THAT barca was the counterpressing
Atletico currently losing to Leonesa in extra time with 10 minutes to go
Atletico knocked out from the cup
Liverpool will tear them apart
Liverpool will tear them apart
Liverpool keep winning games they should not be winningAtletico knocked out from the cup
Liverpool will tear them apart
Atletico will do them, in some bs fashion like bayern in '16, where it's clear there's an abyss between them but luck is in atletico's corner
That would likely also mean we end up beating them in the final
Atletico knocked out from the cup
Liverpool will tear them apart
Liverpool aren't tearing anyone apart at the moment. Simeone loves a low-scoring mugfest. He'll fancy his chances of eliminating the current holders for sure. Fingers crossed he gets it done.
Liverpool keep winning games they should not be winning
Atletico will do them, in some bs fashion like bayern in '16, where it's clear there's an abyss between them but luck is in atletico's corner
That would likely also mean we end up beating them in the final
This is just one of those situations when you know something is coming, but you can't stop it and just prepare for the ride
Liverpool keep winning games they should not be winning
Atletico will do them, in some bs fashion like bayern in '16, where it's clear there's an abyss between them but luck is in atletico's corner
That would likely also mean we end up beating them in the final
I'd agree when the draw was made but if you believe that you really haven't been paying attention to just how shit Atletico have been. They are not even close to being what they were in 2014 or 2016. They'll probably find a way to make it a contest at home but they won't survive the second leg.
Rodrigo OUT for Valencia...... not injured. Off to Barca?
Holy hell! That tiqui-taca midfield under Setién.......