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From Andy West
Spanish soccer writer
Had you spotted the excursion of Barcelona to Granada on Saturday night in the La Liga schedule, you could well have called the winning team could be topping the desk in the conclusion of the day.
You would not have figured that team could be Granada.
But that is what occurred, the promoted Andalusians getting a 2-0 victory that is deserved to render Barca floundering in mid-table, using seven points from their five matches.
It is the worst beginning for 25 years of Barca, but even more worrying since Ernesto Valverde’s men handled two efforts than the outcome was that the operation whilst looking vulnerable at the opposite end.
What’s going on? And what is the reigning winners do? A crisis is examined by BBC Sport in the Nou Camp.
The very first thing to note about Barca’s bad form is for outside trips their problems have been exclusively reserved.
Even the Nou Camp has remained a near-fortress, together with since Valverde came in summer 2017 as manager Barca winning their past 12 straight home games and only losing on their own patch.
Lately they have been nothing short of disastrous on the street, turning into a collection of performances that were awful much constantly for it to be a mere exaggeration.
Valverde’s guys have now failed to win any of their past eight games away, with Saturday’s loss at Granada after a highly fortunate Champions League draw at Borussia Dortmund, where they escaped thanks to a collection of fine saves from Marc-Andre ter Stegen, wayward Dortmund finishing and the help of the woodwork.
Following Saturday’s setback supervisor Valverde admitted:”I am worried. Away from home we are not getting outcomes and if that happens a few times, like now, it’s a symptom of never [playing] . We are not playing good games.”
For many different reasons Barca are away from their own surroundings’ comfortable blanket, they seem uneasy. What exactly are those reasons?
Far from ideal, their groundwork to the campaign was in defence of his players and Valverde.
Several players missed a massive chunk of pre-season because of their involvement while the group that was skeletal embarked on a programme of friendlies comprising games.
Perhaps as a result, they have suffered a string of accidents since the action started. Skipper Lionel Messi was sidelined ahead of the curtain-raiser in Athletic Bilbao, also there have been absences such as Jordi Alba, Ousmane Dembele, Luis Suarez along with Samuel Umtiti.
Consequently, Valverde has been repeatedly forced to shuffle his pack and also use several players. New signings Antoine Griezmann and Frenkie de Jong, for instance, have already been lined up at every possible position in the forward line and midfield respectively – hardly beneficial to their process.
Another disruption that is self-inflicted was that the Neymar saga.
The club unpleasantly public courtship of their opinion-dividing former star, which lasted right before Spanish transfer deadline day in early September, was a severe distraction and created a strong belief that the group is composed of a couple of untouchables along with a group of gamers (Dembele, Umtiti,” Nelson Semedo, Ivan Rakitic) who’d have been happily jettisoned in case a part-exchange deal for Neymar was struck by Paris St-Germain.
Messi, specifically, is facing allegations – similar to those he’s regularly faced at international level – that he wields too powerful an influence over team selection and the overall hierarchy, especially given the continuing starting XI standing of his very best friend Suarez, despite the Uruguayan’s inconsistent type within the past couple of years.
Any excessive power is unlooked for, coming as a of the expectations heaped on his shoulders but the hints add gas to the idea that the champions are far from a combined and joyful camp at this time.
It’s undeniable that a group with the depth and caliber of Barca should be capable of overcoming opponents like Osasuna, Eibar and Granada.
For most observers, the very fact they have neglected to do so can be attributed fairly and squarely on the tactical approach used by Valverde, whose place is again coming under serious scrutiny after he survived the dip in the aftermath of his team’s horrible collapse at Liverpool in last season’s Champions League semi-final.
Valverde has been accused of being an coach, setting up his groups first and foremost to avoid defeat in a way far removed from the ball-playing principles espoused since the days of Johan Cruyff. For attacking inspiration, according to his critics, he places everything in Messi’s foot.
An over-reliance on Messi – dubbed’Messidependencia’ by the Spanish press – has been a recurring issue for five or five years, and it’s certainly the case that Barca have looked bereft of ideas throughout his absence from the opening weeks of the season: Griezmann, as an example, has not managed one shot on target during his four away games for the club.
More worrying yet, perhaps, is that Barca have the defensive listing in La Liga. Even the home games they won (equally 5-2, against Real Betis and Valencia) were distinctly uncomfortable by a defensive perspective, along with the waters of space regularly available to Dortmund and Granada counter-attackers through the most recent games was an alarming indication of a group which currently knows neither how to attack or to defend.
Valverde appears particularly concerned by his eponymous trio, running four unique combinations throughout his team’s six games and trying a lot more from the bench when they haven’t worked out, meaning seven players have already received significant playing time at the middle of the field – with no looking particularly persuasive.
Those failings have generated something of a vacuum cleaner, causing a scarcity of support to a back four and an inability to provide adequate ammunition to some attack.
Configuring an midfield is the largest task with the rest of the team more or less picking on itself and it is one that he has not attained.
Barca start to the season, about the back of a much worse end to last season, is piling pressure.
The favor of Valverde is counted in by two factors that are major : firstly, he is thought to enjoy assistance from Messi.
Although social networking has turned against the Barca boss (any mention of his title on Twitter is invariably followed by the phrase’outside’), there have been hardly any stirrings of discontent against him in the Nou Camp – probably as a result of the superb home form on his watch, meaning fans who attend games have only actually ever watched his team winning.
That could quickly change. Patience is running out and it will be fascinating to find the response when Barca are back in action at home to in-form Villarreal, who have taken points Valverde receives Tuesday night this season.
In case the worst happens, there are tons of potential replacements – the very lengthy list of now available directors includes Pablo Machin, Quique Setien, Abelardo, Massimiliano Allegri, Laurent Blanc and (surely not?) Jose Mourinho. (Marcelino, recently dismissed by Valencia, isn’t a choice because tutors in Spain are not permitted to manage more than one group in a season.)
Of those already in employment, Netherlands manager Ronald Koeman would necessarily be heavily linked given his past as a playing great with the golf club, as would former midfield star Xavi Hernandez, although only just starting his managerial career with an appointment at Qatari side Al Sadd. It’s odds-on which Xavi will handle Barca at any point – the question is whether now would be too soon.
Provided that we might find out.
Tense, belly-laugh bizarre that is mind-warpingly, humorous, and full of awwwwww
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