CL | Round 1: FC Barcelona - Bayern Munchen 0-3

BBZ8800

Senior Member
No player can operate without a system and proper teammates, that's what happened. Not depay, not lewa, not Messi, not Ronaldo. No one. We are in shambles. Koeman has not improved our tactical level one bit. Our most constructed attacks came when 17 year olds where on the pitch, probably because they have more tactical training in Barca b.

But you have to wonder whether the lack of the system is a problem, or our players just suck, or our players can't fit into one system.

Let's check the past:
2014/15 Lucho: horrible football in the first part of the year. He had fights with Messi and Neymar and he was 1-2 games away from sacking.
In the 2nd half, we magically clicked and played awesome.
2015/16 Lucho: we continued to play well in the first half of a season, but after a New year we fell apart.
Neymar stoped following Lucho's orders, Messi started to drop deep and play where he wants.
We almost blew 13-15 points of advantage in La Liga and barely won it in the end.
In a CL against Atletico, in the first game we couldn't score in 11 vs 11, and in the 2nd game we didn't have a single decent shot in 90 matches even though we were chasing the score.
2016/17 Lucho: we were so unbalanced and all over the place that Lucho had to turn to 343 to gain some advantage in midfield.
We lost La Liga and in a CL we had 2 epic defeats with 4:0 against Psg and 3:0 vs Juve.
======================================================
So, Lucho's last 2 years were a disaster.
We all wanted something new, because our ship was sinking.
Then we got EV.
Even though he won 2 La ligas in his 2 full seasons, he was named as the biggest cancer ever, the worst coach ever, "I want my Barca back", "I will open a champagne when he gets fired", the man who singlehandadly ruined Barca (lol), "Retardo".

Ok, fine.
Let's assume that he was bad.
But if he was bad, that means that with Lucho's last 2 seasons and EV's 2 and a half, that means that we had 4 and a half bad seasons in a row till that moment, with a bad football, unbalanced team and bad tactics.

Then we hired a chess master tactician Setien.
And things turned to even way worse than under EV.

That was already 5 full seasons of bad football in total after Lucho, EV and Setien.
Then we hired Koeman and fell even lower.
We can't beat any big team anymore.
That means that we have 6 full seasons of bad tactics and unbalanced team in a row.
This season will be our 7th bad season in a row.

Now, the question is:
1. if we had 4 different coaches in a row and they all sucked, what is more likely:1
1) those 4 coaches were all horrible
2) or maybe something is bad with our team (Amigos don't want to run and follow the orders while the young players are meh, overrated and not fit for our system)?

You talk about system: I still can't imagine a system/formation in which Frenkie-Pedri duo will play a functional, eye pleasing and results-wise successful football, for example.
The same applies for Mats, Dest, Alba, Eric, Busi, Puig, Braithwaite, Dembele etc

We can't play Barca TikiTaka football because:
1. it is outdated
2. Pedri is a hide and seek master who can't be a leader of midfield who plays possession-based football
3. Frenkie can't play possession football because he sucks in that style
4. Busi can't play football anymore
5. our fullback are horrible
6. we have one decent attacker

If we want to play faster:
1. Busi sucks
2. amigos can't play faster
3. we don't have wingers who can run with the ball without tripping over the ball
4. and in general, fans and socios will get mad because we are not dwelling on the ball through the middle and with 1000 rondos centrally

It is easy to say: we need a system.
I am not sure do we have 2-3 decent players in a team at all.
Due to years of bad transfers, hanging onto Pep's era, not moving forward and training La Masia kids to play the same football as 15-29 years ago and the expecting them to play something faster or more direct and efficient.
 

JohnN

Senior Member
But you have to wonder whether the lack of the system is a problem, or our players just suck, or our players can't fit into one system.

Let's check the past:
2014/15 Lucho: horrible football in the first part of the year. He had fights with Messi and Neymar and he was 1-2 games away from sacking.
In the 2nd half, we magically clicked and played awesome.
2015/16 Lucho: we continued to play well in the first half of a season, but after a New year we fell apart.
Neymar stoped following Lucho's orders, Messi started to drop deep and play where he wants.
We almost blew 13-15 points of advantage in La Liga and barely won it in the end.
In a CL against Atletico, in the first game we couldn't score in 11 vs 11, and in the 2nd game we didn't have a single decent shot in 90 matches even though we were chasing the score.
2016/17 Lucho: we were so unbalanced and all over the place that Lucho had to turn to 343 to gain some advantage in midfield.
We lost La Liga and in a CL we had 2 epic defeats with 4:0 against Psg and 3:0 vs Juve.
======================================================
So, Lucho's last 2 years were a disaster.
We all wanted something new, because our ship was sinking.
Then we got EV.
Even though he won 2 La ligas in his 2 full seasons, he was named as the biggest cancer ever, the worst coach ever, "I want my Barca back", "I will open a champagne when he gets fired", the man who singlehandadly ruined Barca (lol), "Retardo".

Ok, fine.
Let's assume that he was bad.
But if he was bad, that means that with Lucho's last 2 seasons and EV's 2 and a half, that means that we had 4 and a half bad seasons in a row till that moment, with a bad football, unbalanced team and bad tactics.

Then we hired a chess master tactician Setien.
And things turned to even way worse than under EV.

That was already 5 full seasons of bad football in total after Lucho, EV and Setien.
Then we hired Koeman and fell even lower.
We can't beat any big team anymore.
That means that we have 6 full seasons of bad tactics and unbalanced team in a row.
This season will be our 7th bad season in a row.

Now, the question is:
1. if we had 4 different coaches in a row and they all sucked, what is more likely:1
1) those 4 coaches were all horrible
2) or maybe something is bad with our team (Amigos don't want to run and follow the orders while the young players are meh, overrated and not fit for our system)?

You talk about system: I still can't imagine a system/formation in which Frenkie-Pedri duo will play a functional, eye pleasing and results-wise successful football, for example.
The same applies for Mats, Dest, Alba, Eric, Busi, Puig, Braithwaite, Dembele etc

We can't play Barca TikiTaka football because:
1. it is outdated
2. Pedri is a hide and seek master who can't be a leader of midfield who plays possession-based football
3. Frenkie can't play possession football because he sucks in that style
4. Busi can't play football anymore
5. our fullback are horrible
6. we have one decent attacker

If we want to play faster:
1. Busi sucks
2. amigos can't play faster
3. we don't have wingers who can run with the ball without tripping over the ball
4. and in general, fans and socios will get mad because we are not dwelling on the ball through the middle and with 1000 rondos centrally

It is easy to say: we need a system.
I am not sure do we have 2-3 decent players in a team at all.
Due to years of bad transfers, hanging onto Pep's era, not moving forward and training La Masia kids to play the same football as 15-29 years ago and the expecting them to play something faster or more direct and efficient.

What amigos? I keep hearing they are the problem. And one by one they are gone, but the problem gets worse. That's because there never was a system in place and only thing keeping us afloat was the veteran's pure footballing level the Moore veterans leave, the more our level dropped.
Yes, it's more probable that we had 3 bad coaches in a row.
2 of those are already out of job and Koeman will follow in their footsteps.
 

Bobo32

Senior Member
"The amigos" (is this some buzzword you get paid by Bartomeus troll-money to use?) were the ones able to play in a way that destroyed football.

People (if you can call them people) who should probably rather be supporters (if you can call them supporters) of Real Madrid, AC Milan or Manchester United, demanded that big names like Neymar, Coutinho, Dembele etc, and physical and more direct players like Vidal be brought in so to be able to compete with "the more physical" modern football (the exact same thing that was said 2000-2005)

It's sad the way they destroyed the best team ever in the last 10 years.
The problem always was with "the enemies" rather than "the amigos" - Rosell and Bartomeu, and the shortsighted, anti-Cruyff, anti-identity, anti-football way that so clearly and openly destroyed the club. They brought their own amigos onto the pitch, and it was very tough for the good players to play good football when the midfield often consisted of Vidal and Rakitic f.e.
 

Kubala

Member
48% possession at home. 5 at the back, counter-attack football is diametric to our footballing philosophy. We need to get back to 4-3-3, high press and dominating possession, the system understood and played by every player at every level of the club. Now there is no Messi or Suarez we should be fielding a team full of energy & work rate, pressing high and keeping the ball to take the pressure off the defence. Sadly, I don't think Koeman is the man for this.
We are in a tough situation, thanks to years of mismanagement but we still have some very good players and some very promising youth. Fitness, both medically and stamina wise, seems to be a big issue and needs to be addressed. Rather than daydreaming about this player or that (who we can't afford nor attract anymore) we need to get the right manager and coaching team in place. Xavi would, for me, be the most obvious choice to get back to what made us the greatest club in the world for the last 15 years. Tiki-Taka, high press and promoting from La Masia.

Who knows, Garcia, Balde, Gonzalez, Pedri, Piug, Fati & Gavi might just be the next generation we can build an all-conquering team around. :p
 
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Birdy

Senior Member
"The amigos" (is this some buzzword you get paid by Bartomeus troll-money to use?) were the ones able to play in a way that destroyed football.

People (if you can call them people) who should probably rather be supporters (if you can call them supporters) of Real Madrid, AC Milan or Manchester United, demanded that big names like Neymar, Coutinho, Dembele etc, and physical and more direct players like Vidal be brought in so to be able to compete with "the more physical" modern football (the exact same thing that was said 2000-2005)

It's sad the way they destroyed the best team ever in the last 10 years.
The problem always was with "the enemies" rather than "the amigos" - Rosell and Bartomeu, and the shortsighted, anti-Cruyff, anti-identity, anti-football way that so clearly and openly destroyed the club. They brought their own amigos onto the pitch, and it was very tough for the good players to play good football when the midfield often consisted of Vidal and Rakitic f.e.

Who the fuck demanded Vidal??
You are high again

AS long as Pique, Busi, Alba, and Roberto keep playing, and keep having a status in this team, then there are still AMigos.
Whenever this team will see an XI without any of them, and their influence in the dressing room vanished, then we can talk again

Deal with it...
 

Daisymorr

Active member
We got away with a 0-3 defeat. Could have easily been 5 or more.

Bayern hold no mercy for us, they would happy put 10 past us if they could.

Getting their own back for a few beatings we gave them 10 years ago.
 

Givenchy

Senior Member
We got away with a 0-3 defeat. Could have easily been 5 or more.

Bayern hold no mercy for us, they would happy put 10 past us if they could.

Getting their own back for a few beatings we gave them 10 years ago.

funny you mention 10. I had a dream last night we lost 10-0 at the Allianz
 

Sooke

Member
It's not like they can't do that. 10 is not too far from 8. But I don't think Barcelona will allow that happen again.
 

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