Ivan Rakitić

[Nothanks]

Wanted Arthur to start instead of him , he wasted many offensive actions

it's odd i personally really like Arthur but he doesn't inspire me to believe he'll start offensive actions but rather resist pressure and pass it to someone more daring and creative.

 

[Judoman]

It is easy to understand, folks enjoy keeping their blinders on and are quite comfortable being hypocritical--applying different standards to their emotionally favored players over others.



We have been involved in the highest caliber of football matches this year--and not lost a big one. One of the best goal scoring records and defensive records in major football alike. In fact we have played the highest level of football in world football this year--that goes for any club or national side. To try to replicate Pep's Barca without an in your prime Xavi, Iniesta and Busi would be a fools errand, since those individuals don't exist anywhere on the planet.

So people are going to have to accept Barca is the best team in the world but not the best Barca team ever, I am good with this and enjoying every last minute of Messi brilliance and team excellence. Or not--they can stay pissy in their unattainable, idolized, space if they so choose.

Don t get me wrong, i ll take trophies over beauty every time. I don t have an issue with the current situation, but it doesn t hurt to think ahaid and
it doesn t hurt to address weaknesses proactively. We shouldn t repeat past mistakes.

 

[Arizona Scott]

Don t get me wrong, i ll take trophies over beauty every time. I don t have an issue with the current situation, but it doesn t hurt to think ahaid and
it doesn t hurt to address weaknesses proactively. We shouldn t repeat past mistakes.

I agree with the proactive part. And I think our transfer hit rate the last 2 years have been so vastly improved from most of the last decade in targeting areas of need and getting in young players.

 

[booge]

We need to sell Rakitic this summer. With FDJ coming, Arthur in need of even more regular minutes next season to fully complete his integration into the squad/lineup, Vidal also proving himself very much needed of adding something different into our squad, and Roberto not only able to play, but actually being more useful in that right midfield role, since his 1 on 1 defending and speed, which should be full back's biggest strengths, but with Roberto they are his biggest weaknesses, and if Wague continues to improve and gets promoted (which in all honesty he seems to be ready for), we'll have that extra option for RB, then Roberto can play in midfield even more regularly. Oh, and almost forgot Alena, who is even more vital to get many more minutes next season, if we want him to continue improving and eventually possibly developing into starter material for us.

And most importantly, we need all these players to be equal in the eyes of our manager, so their minutes are all fairly divided on the pitch, no special treatment. And that will never happen as long as EV's wife keeps hogging all the minutes himself. Even Busquets needs to be rotated regularly starting next season, much less Rakitic, who isn't nearly as important and influental for our club as Busquets is, being a home grown player and the only remaining member of our golden generation alongside Pique and Messi, so I don't see us selling him.

So selling Rakitic is a MUST this summer, no matter what Valverde says. If he doesn't like it, he can leave too (he won't be here fore more than the next 2 years anyway). So we might as well sell Rakitic now, while he's still worth something substantial, not wait for 2021 to sell him for peanuts back to Sevilla, just so that Valverde can keep using him these remaining two years, that he'll be here for, and run him completely down to the ground, form and quality-wise, while one or even two of our great young talents like Alena, Arthur, FDJ and Puig possibly get tired of waiting for their chance of being a regular starter and leave until then.

Selling Rakitic this summer is vital, even if it costs us losing Valverde too because of it (and let's be honest, EV himself is not exactly vital, infact he is pretty expendable too, even if we do win the treble under him this year). Cause he won't be here after the new Board comes in 2021 anyway, so we really shouldn't read too much into which players he wants not sold, especially when that player himself is a 30+ year old, who is by far our most expendable midfielder right now, when you look at his age and what he brings to this team, and who will be gone in 2021 at the latest anyway, along with Valverde, who is his biggest advocate for keeping him beyond this summer.

Both Rakitic and Valverde are expendable. In any case, we need to break this pair asap, if we want all of our midfielders being treated somehow fairly and equally regarding their minutes, starting next season. Obviously selling Rakitic and Valverde being so pissed that he would go himself too is the dream, but i'm content with us just selling Rakitic at this point, and Valverde staying until his contract is up and with it this Board too anyway.

mourinho is right. football only sport where everyone thinks their a genius

 

[Arizona Scott]

Nah every bit as true for American football, baseball and basketball. The former has phrases like "monday morning quarterbacking" and "the most popular guy in town is the back up quarterback". Because if the idiot manager/coach had only put in the back up quarterback everything would have been rosey instead. (just like if only we played Semedo, Dembele, Malcom....next young player who fans see glimpses but not them in training...we would be so much better, Valverde is such an idiot, yada, yada)


No reference for Cricket or Rugby, do they not also fans think those coaches/managers are idiots and they are geniuses?

 

[BusiTheKing]

Regarding the Liverpool game. If Vidal was good, which he was, and if Busi was good, which he was, and if Rakitic was also good, then please tell me how the fuck our midfield was so shy? Are you seriously telling me that Milner, Fabinho and Henderson are simply better footballers than us?

Liverpool coming to Camp Nou, winning possession and creating more chances than us means that we weren't good enough. Period. If everyone in our midfield performed well, then they smply aren't good enough players for Barcelona. If our players can't show intensity in a fucking Champions League semi final, after having wrapped up the league, then show them the door immediately.

 

[kilian]

Regarding the Liverpool game. If Vidal was good, which he was, and if Busi was good, which he was, and if Rakitic was also good, then please tell me how the fuck our midfield was so shy? Are you seriously telling me that Milner, Fabinho and Henderson are simply better footballers than us?

Liverpool coming to Camp Nou, winning possession and creating more chances than us means that we weren't good enough. Period. If everyone in our midfield performed well, then they smply aren't good enough players for Barcelona. If our players can't show intensity in a fucking Champions League semi final, after having wrapped up the league, then show them the door immediately.

You ask an interesting question and the answer is pretty evident if you recognize that Milner, Fabinho and Henderson are definitely not better players than Rakitic, Vidal, Busquets.
You have two midfield trios - midfield trio A has three average players who played very good and dominated the game, and midfield trio B with two very good players and one world class player (when at his best) who performed average and were dominated for the bigger part of the game.
Without going into a super detailed analysis of every possible performance factor, what`s the remaining factor that usually determines the performance of players? Coach.
Klopp is simply a better coach than Valverde and he created a better structure and system for his players to perform in this game and it was visible on the field. The difference is he doesn`t have a GOAT in his team.

 

[MTL_Barca]

Regarding the Liverpool game. If Vidal was good, which he was, and if Busi was good, which he was, and if Rakitic was also good, then please tell me how the fuck our midfield was so shy? Are you seriously telling me that Milner, Fabinho and Henderson are simply better footballers than us?

Liverpool coming to Camp Nou, winning possession and creating more chances than us means that we weren't good enough. Period. If everyone in our midfield performed well, then they smply aren't good enough players for Barcelona. If our players can't show intensity in a fucking Champions League semi final, after having wrapped up the league, then show them the door immediately.

I think all midfielders played quite well. Liverpool as a team just pressed super hard and it's not like that's easy to stop even if the midfielders do well. Keeping possession in midfield vs that is just very hard. Vidal for Arthur also meant that Valverde wasn't really going for that.

So you could say Liverpool was better in parts of the game but i don't think it was because Rakitic or some other midfielder had a bad game.

 

[Joan]

Rakitić certainly didn't have a good match on the ball, didn't help us keep possession. But did very well off the ball. Liked his a lot.

Not like we went for possession against Liverpool anyways.

 

[Zidane82]

I think all midfielders played quite well. Liverpool as a team just pressed super hard and it's not like that's easy to stop even if the midfielders do well. Keeping possession in midfield vs that is just very hard. Vidal for Arthur also meant that Valverde wasn't really going for that.

So you could say Liverpool was better in parts of the game but i don't think it was because Rakitic or some other midfielder had a bad game.

They will be far better at home .,.

 

[BBZ8800]

You ask an interesting question and the answer is pretty evident if you recognize that Milner, Fabinho and Henderson are definitely not better players than Rakitic, Vidal, Busquets.
You have two midfield trios - midfield trio A has three average players who played very good and dominated the game, and midfield trio B with two very good players and one world class player (when at his best) who performed average and were dominated for the bigger part of the game.
Without going into a super detailed analysis of every possible performance factor, what`s the remaining factor that usually determines the performance of players? Coach.
Klopp is simply a better coach than Valverde and he created a better structure and system for his players to perform in this game and it was visible on the field. The difference is he doesn`t have a GOAT in his team.

You say:
1. Liverpool has weaker midfielders
2. Liverpool dominated the possession
3. Liverpool has a better coach

I am asking you:
1. if Liverpool dominated possession, why did Barca win 3:0?
2. if Liverpool were better, why did Barca win 3:0?
3. if Klopp is a better coach, why did his team dominate match, couldn't score and were killed on counters as a rookie?

My reply:
The master

Again, sadly for some of you: nobody is handling trophies for more possession.
And a recipe in a CL and on World cups after 2012 is the same: don't have too much possession. Don't have a high defensive line. Don't come into an opponent's half with 10 players.
You will usually be killed on counters.

Btw, the last time when Barca also gave up from a possession, in 2015, we won a CL.
On the other hand, do you know what is happening in a CL lately with teams who have too much possession, play with a high defensive line and come with 10 players into an opponent's half?
I'll give you a hint:

Someone will reply: BUT we had both possession and trophies during Pep.
Well, that was 10 years ago.
With the best team ever...

Someone else will reply: but there HAS to be a way to have BOTH: possession, beautiful play and win CLs today!
Me: well, maybe there is a way.
But nobody has found it yet, so EV nad Zidane are winning trophies in a simpler way: without possession and without too much risks.

 

[mc_lovin]

I actually liked Valverdes approach (and for that starting Vidal over Arthur), but we won 3-0 mainly thanks to Messi and Liverpools ineptitude. I get you have a boner for hard fought (!) matches, but there is something inbetween Valverdes or Guardiolas approach (Heynckes?). What we did is not sustainable, hopefully Frenkie (and Arthur) show more quality on the ball next season without losing too much grit.

 

[Zidane82]

I actually liked Valverdes approach (and for that starting Vidal over Arthur), but we won 3-0 mainly thanks to Messi and Liverpools ineptitude. I get you have a boner for hard fought (!) matches, but there is something inbetween Valverdes or Guardiolas approach (Heynckes?). What we did is not sustainable, hopefully Frenkie (and Arthur) show more quality on ther ball next season without losing too much grit.

Wasn’t Arthur injured ? It wasn’t any kind of masterstroke ..

 

[BBZ8800]

Wasn’t Arthur injured ? It wasn’t any kind of masterstroke ..

Played 73 minutes on Saturday against Levante.
Played 0 minutes against Liverpool.
Played 3 days later 62 minutes against Celta.

He wasn't injured on Wednesday.
He has a chronic pain.
The same as how Suarez has a pain in the knee all season.

So, it WAS EV's masterstroke.

Ev's was saving all players whom he considers as key players against Huesca and Celta.
Vidal and Arthur were used both times together with kids from a B-team.

If Arthur played with kids on Saturday, do you think that a coach considers him as a starter in this moment?

 

[Joan]

Playing Arthur wouldn't make sense considering the approach we took. Clearly Valverde's choice.