Hans-Dieter Flick

[malvolio]

Meh, he talks the same things always. Intensity and hopes. Not much to be learned from managers pressers in general. Some combination of moaning, hopes, and things to improve all the time, with a hope that what went poorly will get fixed.

Thing is this wishful thinking about us doing a U-turn in the second part of the season is based on nothing. We were shit in CL vs big teams last season, we are shit this season too.
It's not like this team was some juggernaut that obliterated everything and is now in a drop of form.

I'm not concentrating much on LL as there you can win with donkies like Fermin and Ferran.

 

[Porque]

Aside from the Ferran chance, Barca were still getting dunked on by Chelsea. Couldn't cope with the intensity or physicality of their players. Caicedo, Enzo, Reece, Cucrella were bullying the Barca players with their physiciality.

Chelsea in attack just did was PSG did 3 years ago: Target the likes of Araujo, Kounde and Balde because they know they are poor on the ball.

It's very easy, if you can bully the Barca midfield and put pressure on the Barca defense, the backline will crumble like stale bread.

Until Barca gets some defenders who are good on the ball and can play out of pressure, this is a cakwalk for any team.

Chelsea adjust very well after the first 15-20 minutes where we were finding good outlets from midfield and defence.

I'd put that partly down to Maresca being a very good coach, and us lacking the talent (Araujo-Pique in defence, Eric in midfield).

Lewy for example is getting blasted on here but 11v11 I thought he was doing fine with the ref being very soft to the Chelsea centreback for some reason he their duels.

 

[serghei]

Chelsea didn't target anyone in particular. Played their normal game and put us under pressure, then collected the reward as our weaker players couldn't cope with the pressure and intensity/pace of the game. Hell, not even the better players showed much, so of course the weaker ones had disaster games.

There's not a question of targeting X or Y. They played their normal game and played through their best players, and it was already enough to beat us. They probably beat us in 11 vs 11 too, but in a closer game. They played a better match.

It was us who had to adapt to them and we couldn't do it.

 

[serghei]

Thing is this wishful thinking about us doing a U-turn in the second part of the season is based on nothing. We were shit in CL vs big teams last season, we are shit this season too.
It's not like this team was some juggernaut that obliterated everything and is now in a drop of form.

I'm not concentrating much on LL as there you can win with donkies like Fermin and Ferran.

Shit is overblown by a mile.

Just because we have issues beating A or A+ sides it doesn't mean we're not good. You have to look at context a bit. All these teams people gush about on this forum didn't amount to much in CL either.

If you make a list of teams that checked quarters + semis in CL in the last 2 seasons or bettered this resume, it's a very short list with maybe 3-4 teams apart from us on it.

We have to understand the club's situation and be sympathetic to it. Everyone wants Barcelona to be in the elite squadron of teams, but we're just not there and we will never be until our finances allow us to build a squad that cost at least half the assembled squads of the teams we are facing on an European stage. We have teams investing 1bn+ to build their squad, and we are not even at half that.

Miracles don't happen in football. They just don't at the level fans dream of. We can perform great stuff and use La Masia to get a head start, but the biggest piece of the puzzle will have to be put in place in the traditional 2020s football way: by spending tens of millions per player and sign the right ones. Those tens of millions per player in multiple positions lead to what I've been saying on this place for years. We lack the 200-300m of quick squad investment to compete really hard at the top.

It's not a manager issue, never was in the last years. All managers make errors. We've overachieved all this time, but we've reached a point where it's the hardest to make the last step and become a real contender for the top spots.

Chelsea barely drew 2-2 at Qarabag in the previous rounds. Got outplayed by Bayern and beaten easily. Lost to several average EPL sides at home. They are not great team people say, but they have the main ingredient to get there faster: money, and lots of it.

It is not a club issue now. The club is great and doing good things. It's a resources issue. If Chelsea or similar clubs would be forced to operate at our spending levels since 2021, they'd be total dross. They wouldn't make hopes about playing CL finals lol and looking at not making a CL final as a sign of being shite. They would actually really be shite.

No other club would actually push through such disastrous finances, do it so valiantly, and carry it this high all the way through the edge of a treble. None. Zero. Every club that achieved more than us in the last years did it by outspending us by an insane factor. And most big spenders failed to even match half of what we did in a dire era.

This is football heritage.

 

[jamrock]

This la Liga is shit, EPL is godly is so overblown & tiresome.

We lost the game, they were better, it happens.

We just need to focus on getting better because this isn't going to work in Europe unless we get lucky

 

[vegitot]

With Raphinha can fully start and Pedri return then the squad is surely better.

Hope some transfer in winter to enhance the squad.

And hope Hansi can make some tweaks in his gameplan (Yamal more centrally, not drive Pedri into ground with his two man midfielders).

 

[serghei]

This la Liga is shit, EPL is godly is so overblown & tiresome.

We lost the game, they were better, it happens.

We just need to focus on getting better because this isn't going to work in Europe unless we get lucky

The difference is not that big.

EPL is the best league, but the draw is hugely favorable for EPL sides in this format vs Spanish sides.

Atletico is known to be a far better team at home, yet they travelled to Arsenal and Liverpool. If those games happen on Metropolitano, it's a whole different affair considering their home record in Europe.

Nearly all Spanish vs EPL sides have been played in England. That's not really fair at all. European knockout ties will show a more telling status of force between Arsenal, Chelsea, City, Liverpool vs Madrid, Barcelona, Atletico.

 

[serghei]

Bilbao and Villareal are shite though. They are not comparable to 4-6 teams in England at all. But we always knew this.

 

[jamrock]

The XI Villarreal played yesterday was definitely not their best XI, not saying that would have made a difference, but it's as if they are interested in making the group stage, they are more interested in quality again for the league phase next season.

 

[serghei]

The XI Villarreal played yesterday was definitely not their best XI, not saying that would have made a difference, but it's as if they are interested in making the group stage, they are more interested in quality again for the league phase next season.

It makes no difference. They are just EL level teams. You'd have to go midtable or lower to find teams at the level of Bilbao in England.

But I am not that interested in this. For me, the bigger 3-4 teams in the league dictate its value at the top. Can Chelsea climb up and aim at the elite without Liverpool dropping? They always seem to take turns. Which is why you have 1-2 teams fighting for the title deep at best.

 

[jamrock]

It makes no difference. They are just EL level teams. You'd have to go midtable or lower to find teams at the level of Bilbao in England.

But I am not that interested in this. For me, the bigger 3-4 teams in the league dictate its value at the top.

I mean it makes sense. Which is why they just want to qualify again next year to keep stacking cash from the CL league phase.

Making a run in this competition isn't really relevant to them, it's all a money play.

Anyways flick trend isn't the place for this.

 

[serghei]

I mean it makes sense. Which is why they just want to qualify again next year to keep stacking cash from the CL league phase.

Making a run in this competition isn't really relevant to them, it's all a money play.

Anyways flick trend isn't the place for this.

It makes even more sense since they know they are not at the required level to even compete in CL.

 

[ajnotkeith]

There is no team that spends that much money but that it will work out for them eventually.

People were deluded thinking these teams like Chelsea won't eventually come good after spending over a billion pounds on players. Those teams have the budget to plug and play new signing after new signing if one doesn't work out, and we have been working on a shoestring budget and still produce world class lineups.

However, what is clear is that Barca has retained its pull. If we can just keep ourselves competitive until we recover fully financially we will be able to sign anybody.

 

[Nello]

Think people are overblowing the tactical aspect of the first half honestly.
Like many have pointed out, it isn't rocket science to man mark our best players and then force the ball to our worst players. Fact is 3 out of 4 players in the backline are weak on the ball, and last night our outlets further up the field sucked aswell, with Fermin making poor use of the ball time and time again, García not involved really and Ferran fumbling all balls he touches. Lewa being questionable and dominated by their cbs, and Yamal always receiving the ball on the touchline with Cucu + 1 on his ass.

it's very hard to compete with 5-7 of your players not being very good on the ball.

People say we underestimate the physical abilities of previous succesfull teams, which is true, but shit do we overestimate our current technical abilities aswell.
From Iniesta -> Fermin
Pedro/Neymar -> Ferran
Mascherano -> Araujo
Alves -> Kounde
Abidal/Alba -> Balde
Busi -> Garcia
Eto'o/Suarez -> 38 year old Lewy

These are huge downgrades.

Likes of Pedri, FDJ, Cubarsí, Yamal obviously don't match the quality of Messi, Xavi etc, but atleast they have the level to play a role in big matches in the right setup.

A left side composed of Balde and Ferran will never be on a team that wins the CL now matter how tactically astute the manager is.

 

[jamrock]

So our current players are as good as some of the best players ever?