This past week has been a tough one for Barcelona and their fans. A 4-0 thrashing by Unai Emery’s Paris Saint-Germain side in the Champions League, and the manner of that defeat, followed by yet another not-so-impressive kind of a display against Leganes.
While the problems have come to the surface now, Barcelona had been ignoring them repeatedly.
Here, Andy West does not, listing five things of grave concern for the club both on and off the pitch right now.
MIDFIELD GONE MISSING
A startling stat to arise from Barca’s victory over Leganes on Sunday night was that Samuel Umtiti made 127 passes, more than any other defender in La Liga all season, while midfielders Ivan Rakitic, Andre Gomes and Rafinha only made 70, 58 and 55 respectively.
This is a stark indication of how, even in a home meeting with an opponent which sits back deep in defence, Barca’s midfield does not influence games in the manner they used to. Barca still attempt to build play from the back, but they largely do so among themselves – the midfield has gone missing.
IMBALANCED MIDFIELD
Similarly, why does a squad which contains a surplus of attacking midfielders (Andres Iniesta, Ivan Rakitic, Andre Gomes, Rafinha, Denis Suarez and Arda Turan) only possess one – Sergio Busquets – who can play in the vital ‘pivot’ position in front of the back four? True, Javier Mascherano plays there internationally for Argentina, but it is a role he has hardly ever filled at Barcelona.
The sight of Gomes, who is not a defensive-minded player in the slightest, labouring his way through the Leganes game as a replacement for the suspended Busquets made you wonder why there is no decent back-up available.
OVER-RELIANCE ON MESSI
At the other end of the field, Barca are obviously always going to rely heavily on Lionel Messi – he is arguably the best player in history, so naturally they will want him to play the lead role in attack. But it is becoming the case that they are almost reduced to Messi or nothing, with ten players virtually standing around and waiting for the other one to do something.
Although that’s an exaggeration, the degree to which Barca depend on Messi for their goals and the creation of chances is unsustainable, and ends up neither maximising his nor anyone else’s talents.
VULNERABLE IN DEFENCE
Conceding four goals against Paris St Germain – especially the manner of those goals – was a big sign that Barcelona’s defence is too easy to breach. And, if anything, that impression was even more evident on Sunday night, when Leganes created several clear chances despite being by far the lowest scorers in La Liga, failing to hit the target in seven of their ten previous games.
If a team like Leganes finds it so easy to get in front of goal, you’re in trouble, and Barca’s midfield – so ineffective these days with the ball – also barely puts up any resistance without it.
DISCONNECT BETWEEN CLUB AND TEAM
The strong words on Monday from Dani Alves, who said that Barca’s current directors don’t know how to treat players and that he deliberately ‘played’ them to manufacture his exit, is very revealing. Alves was the heart and soul of the Nou Camp dressing room and his feelings are bound to be shared by several more players – especially his close friend Lionel Messi.
When times are tough, the apparent lack of respect from the playing squad to their employers is bound to make a difference to morale, perhaps helping to explain Messi’s strangely muted celebration to his winner on Sunday.