Ernesto Valverde - V1

Messi983

Senior Member
Another good tactical analysis.

[youtube]HgiYPWLNsk4[/youtube]


After watching that I'm wondering if we could also see a lineup like that (will just use current players because we don't know who we'll buy).

MATS
Vidal-Pique-Umtiti-Alba
Busquets-Roberto
Messi-Rakitić-Neymar
Suarez

When attacking:

Pique-Busi-Umtiti
Roberto
Vidal-Messi-Rakitić-Alba
Ney-Suarez

So basically Messi still stays RW on the paper but as you could see above from Inaki Williams example he'll also move central a lot either to get the ball or to make space for the overlaping RB. If Neymar will drop back Rakitić can go forward as "2nd striker". I know it's not perfect but he's our most dangerous scoring midfielder and I think he could score 10-15 goals and also get more assists if he plays closer to the goal and with a bit more attacking freedom. He played AMC position in Sevilla and has done well there.


When defending:

Vidal-Pique-Umtiti-Alba
Roberto-Busquets-Rakitić-Neymar
Messi-Suarez

Left side could be exposed here if Neymar won't track back regularly but he did that pretty well this season.
 

serghei

Senior Member
I've watched the video. Interesting. Some problems though.

First, I don't think we need to have Busquets dropping deep and form a 3 line when we attack. Most opponents against Barca go with a 4-5-1 in defense, almost all of them do that, including the top teams. At most, they will make a 4-4-2 defensive setup. But the 4-5-1 is by far the most used defensive arrangement when up against Barca. Because it allows a close 3 in midfield, while also having two wide midfielders who can make pairs with the fullbacks and block the wide areas.

We don't need to be keeping 3 at the back to guard only one attacker from the other team. Way too cautious imo. Busquets can very well go up in front of the two defenders and play as a DLP. Valverde will find out that he will have more control than at Bilbao due to the increased quality of the ball and our philosophy. Teams will create fewer chances against Barca, and he will have to find a way to create superiority in attack against an opponent who simply defends with more players than what we can attack with. Under these conditions, you can't sacrifice a player with Busi's passing range for more defensive security. Wouldn't be the right thing I think.

Second, I'd like us to be less focused on the actual opponents as it's the case with old school defending tactics, and more focused on the ball. An opponent can only hurt you if he is passed to. We don't have to stay extremely close to the opponent to mark him, we just have to make passing to him very hard to pull off in one move. In modern tactics, there is a concept called cover shadow, which says that you can also block a player by placing yourself on his pass trajectory. if I stand in front of a player I actually block him, by making him inaccessible to his teammate. I block the pass to that player and I also obstruct the vision of the ball carrier. And also, by not standing right next to him (as in marking him), I gain access to other players and I can also move towards the ball putting pressure on the player who has it. This is illustrated bellow.

So, in this example, if my LCM is staying very close to the 'option 2' player, some other players need to stop the player with the ball (meaning an opponent somewhere gets more space because every extra player I bring in an area means more space somewhere else on the pitch). So, basically, if I stay here way too close to option 2 player, and if some other player can't pressure the guy with the ball (Neymar is too far), he can advance with the ball until he is approached by one of my players. And if he is not approached by anyone (because it's not their man to handle) he can very much go all the way to my 16m. box. PSG did this a lot in the 4-0 loss (see Meunier and Kurzawa's runs).

But if I don't block the receiver of the pass, and, instead, I only obstruct the trajectory of the pass, it makes that pass inaccessible. I do not longer react to the player itself, but to the situation and the position. In fact, am I the one who makes the opponent adapt even if the opponent has the initiative. This is the sort of aggressive defense we need to impose again. Not to mark the players out, because in this case, every marking mistake can lead to a conceded goal. But to control which passing options I allow the opponent to make (some passes are more dangerous than others), and which passing options I close down and control. In this way, I can very much predict where the other team is going to play, and I can then take measures to fortify those areas. This is very much based on the belief that the other team will pass in the areas that are more free. So if I decide on purpose which are the areas that I leave more open depending on where the ball is, I basically know how the opponent will play (to some degree). This is so much better than trying to pull off a traditional type of defending. Which is not feasible with the players we have.

option_marking.jpg
 
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Barcilliant

Senior Member
If Valverde wants a pressing game he is going to have to recruit some new players. We need a box to box midfielder with real energy, a midfielder who can control play and two new full backs. Alba doesn't press or play well for that matter.
 

gasgas

Senior Member
Let's hope he can turn Paulinho into xavi because otherwise, that's another trophyless season coming
 

serghei

Senior Member
My biggest hope for the season is this man. I really believe in him. He is the hard workig type, like Pep. Lives for football and does everything for football. And I think he knows his tactics.

Toss everything aside. In this squad there is a winning formula with the players we have right now. I really believe it. We just need the right manager to take us back to what we know. Nobody can convince me that Sergi Roberto is not a very good player. Or that Rakitic is suddenly shit after being very good 2 years ago. Or that MSN is not the best trio in the world. Or that Pique is not an elite defender when his head is in the game. Or that Umtiti is not a great talent at CB. Or that Alba is not one of the best LBs in the world atm. Or that Iniesta is completely finished as a player.

Have faith and believe in the team.
 

serghei

Senior Member
Inb4 he does a Conte and resigns lol

Bartomeu to manage Barca.

What happened to you? You were never this negativistic. You really believe the darkest times are about to come for Barca? Is this because Madrid is looking great at the moment?
 

DonAK

President of FC Barcelona
What happened to you? You were never this negativistic. You really believe the darkest times are about to come for Barca? Is this because Madrid is looking great at the moment?

More than Madrid looking great, I'm worried about the baboons in charge of the club.

So many things going wrong. Whether Madrid does well or bad, the club should be managed well.

Instead we're not able to sign bargains available, seem to be out of any plans, have one potential scandal after the other every second month, and have a 600m project incoming with very little transparency on the total cost of each renovation.

It just doesn't look too well to me, when they struggle with the simplest of things and are starting a big project just like that.

If something goes wrong with Espai Barca and the cost shoots up, things could turn out very critical for the club. The incompetence in the Nou Mestalla is still very much in my memory. Obv Barca bigger and better club, but I wouldn't say it's particularly well run right now.

Would like to add that the club's growth is going at a slower rate than expected and that we needed a player to introduce us to our new sponsor.

Even the most optimistic guy would turn pessimistic at this.

It doesn't even look like they will go away in 2021. Cardoner is being touted as Barto's successor and he's arguably worse. With the way Grupo Godo in MD and gutless Sport openly support them and are even backing Paulinho now, it doesn't look good.

tl;dr

Club going backwards and leadership not learning from their mistakes with very little pressure from opposition due to enjoying the backing of the two biggest sports papers in Catalunya.
 
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Interlop

Member
He is our biggest signing this year. I hope he brings motivation to this current squad and improves it tactically.
 

xXKonan

Senior Member
I believe Valverde can get more out of this current squad than Lucho did even though we still need a Midfielder and a RB.

Probably the main reason I haven't gone into full meltdown mode yet as Valverde still hasn't even got a chance to manage a full game with this team.
 

DonAK

President of FC Barcelona
I have faith in Valverde doing better, but this is a not a good look for the club having a 600m+ project and having to replace several key players at once because your management and club leadership sucks. You're risking a sporting project for a stadium like Arsenal when they built the Emirates Stadium.

In the end, if this continues. We sign Paulinho and fail to sign a RB now. Repeat the same shit next year and the year after.

It's going to end in tears.

You won't have Messi saving you every year. There is only one Messi and you're making his job harder than it should be. Besides, Messi won't be at Barca forever.
 
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