Crunch Time for Barça.

With possibly nine matches left, Barça are entering the crunch time of their season.

Barça are still on track for an amazing season if all things go according to plan. Their match against Getafe is the last match of April before they enter “Crunch Time” in May. That month alone can see them win all three titles available or some, or worse, none.

Barça have only five league matches remaining in their quest for the league crown. I have been a firm believer that La Liga always comes down to the final five matches of the season. It is a rarity when you see a club win La Liga with a big gap atop of the standings so these next few games will be interesting. Barça’s remaining league matches are against Getafe, Cordoba, Real Sociedad, Atlético and Deportivo. They win those matches, and La Liga is theirs and that could happen sooner if Real Madrid slip up in their matches against Sevilla and Valencia, which are bunched in between their clash against Juventus. They also have a Copa del Rey Final against Athletic Club at the Camp Nou at the end of May too.

Now, some have already ruled them out of the Champions League after being paired with Bayern Munich, but it is not over till the referee blows the final whistle. Yes, Pep and Bayern Munich will be their opponents but you can never write off Barça. It is not that difficult to feel optimistic. While Pep loves his team to play possession football, Lucho has Barça displaying similar features that aided Real Madrid when they eliminated Bayern from the Champions League last season; scoring from direct counter attacks and set pieces. I would not rule the Blaugrana out and do not compare what happened two seasons ago with this team.

So Barça are heading down the final stretch of the season. They just need to remain healthy, focused, and confident, while taking it one game at a time. If they can do that, then the sky’s the limit for them. They just need to take it one game at a time.

The Future of Dani Alves with Barça.

Dani Alves is entering the final months of his career as a Barça player. His contract ends at the conclusion of the season. He is free to talk to other teams since January as he was hoping to stay with the Blaugrana. That might be different as of last week since both, the club and the player, differ on terms for a new deal. Either a compromise must be reached or this relationship will come to a sad end.

Dani Alves will go down in Barça’s history as the greatest right back to have ever played for the club. At one time, he was considered one of the best in the game. However, those days feels like a distant memory. He was such an offensive asset in the past as he partnered with Messi down on the right flank while the club won all those titles under Guardiola. When Barça captured the league and Champions League double in 2010-2011 season, Dani had 18 assists. However, he has not reached double digits in league assists since the 2011-2012 season. Furthermore, we have been witness to his gradual decline over the years with no hopes of improvement as he has become more known for his ineffective crosses as a running gag with followers.

Charts courtesy of Sarah Khoury @SarahKhoury2

Last week, Barça president Bartomeu and Dani Alves’s agent, Dinorah Santana, sat down for one last meeting to try to come to an agreement after initial talks began following El Clásico. Santana, also Dani’s ex-wife, spoke to the media from the passenger seat of her car, after that meeting ended, to inform the public that no deal had been reached. She disclosed that the fullback was seeking a three year deal and that Barça offered a new contract based on conditions. Santana stated, “Barça said three years if the player plays at least 60 percent each season, if he doesn’t, it won’t continue year-on-year.” She added, “That for me is not three years. It is one year”.

VÍDEO: Ya puedes escuchar las declaraciones de la agente de Alves tras la reunión con el Barça http://t.co/JgJa4DEM7f pic.twitter.com/kVveU8HhGZ
— Mundo Deportivo (@mundodeportivo) April 8, 2015

Santana was not finished. She then mentioned that she had spoken with Barça presidential candidates about his future. “I’ve spoken with some of the presidential candidates at Barça and they’ve told me think differently.” She was now trying to use political propaganda against this current board. That makes sense seeing as the club seems to be only attracting bad publicity and this would be another setback for them come elections time.

Alves' agent: "I've spoken with some of the presidential candidates at Barça and they've told me think differently."
— SPORT English (@Sport_EN) April 9, 2015

Santana told the world that Barça offered Dani Alves a 1+1+1 deal, but Barça countered that they had offered him a 2+1 deal instead. It was the classic he said, she said between two parties negotiating. The problem was Santana was taking this to the media in hopes of winning public sympathy. Santana stated that Dani Alves was sad, although he sure caught many fans off guard when he later posted a photo of himself on Instagram smiling with his pants at his ankles. If a photo is worth a thousand words, then that photo was the epiphany of dropping the ball at the worst moment in terms of garnering more sympathizers on his side.

Tw Alves: "Life is a great game and I'm a small player #goodvibealways #lovelife" [danid2ois] pic.twitter.com/goIbqYiikU
— barcastuff (@barcastuff) April 9, 2015

This unexpectedly turned into a game of Poker when Santana tried to use other teams’ offers as leverage against the board. Barça cannot sign new players thanks to the FIFA transfer ban, so if Dani Alves leaves, the club is stuck with Montoya and Douglas as the only first team fullbacks for next season. Santana tried to use that to her client’s advantage when she said, “Dani has a concrete offer on the table for a three-year deal plus the option for an extra year with a better wage than he has here and a signing on fee.”

By no means am I a fan of this current Barça board. I detest them and want them gone. However, they were right to balk at this proposal. Just because Barça are in this predicament because of the transfer ban does not mean that they should held hostage and be forced to give Dani Alves the deal that he wants. If other teams have offered the fullback a three-year deal with better wages, then call their bluff in this poker game. How can you justify giving Dani Alves a raise when he has regressed over the years?

Furthermore, this month’s issue of Four Four Two had an article indicating the top 50 paid footballers in the world. Dani came in 16th with a weekly salary of £182,341 (roughly $268,000 a week). Mind you, Philip Lahm came in 43rd, earning $210,000 and makes you wonder who really deserves a raise but that is a different story. The fact that Dani Alves thinks he can force the club to give him a raise since they cannot replace him till 2016 is not exactly in the club’s best interest. They are planning on giving the likes of Pique, Jordi Alba and Neymar new wages in the near future and that budget cannot be feasible if includes paying Dani more than what he is earning now.

If Dani Alves wants to stay, then accept the new deal. He once posted on his Instagram account, “… felicidade está nas coisas mais simples e não em notas de cem” which basically means happiness comes in the simplest things, and not in $100 bills. Well, Dani, practice what you preach! If he does not want to play for Barça next season with his current salary, then thanks for the memories and good luck wherever you go.

Dani Alves commented that he will think about his future after the season is over. However, if both sides want Dani to remain, then he should accept the offer or else the club will go with a platoon of Montoya and Bartra at that position (forget about Douglas), or even 3-4-3 formation till the transfer ban ends. That’s a four month gamble risk till Barça can sign new players in the January 2016 winter transfer window. Since Dani Alves is suspended for the upcoming match against Paris Saint-Germain, we will get a glimpse of life without Dani. There is still time for both sides to reach to some sort of an agreement and the current Barça offer seems fair enough. If Dani Alves wants to stay with Barça, then he should accept the offer and not try to bluff his way into a raise.

Ibrahim Ayyub – @IBES16

* Special thanks to Sarah Khoury for the Dani Alves charts. You can follow her on her twitter @SarahKhoury2 for statistical charts regarding FC Barcelona and their players.

Barça’s Three Tenors Need to Revitalize their Mojo.

FC Barcelona dropped points for the first time since February. With PSG next, Barça’s Three Tenors need to get their mojo back.

For just the third time in 2015, FC Barcelona dropped points after this weekend’s Saturday 2-2 draw to Sevilla. This is a streak a majority of teams in the world would love to enjoy. However, this is La Liga where any lost points when both Barça and Madrid are chasing the title are never forgotten. Barça can calm some fears if they get past these next hurdle of matches with great results. However, in order for that to happen, Barça’s Three Tenors needs to get clicking again.

When Barça were running rampant after that Sociedad loss, most of the credit was aimed at Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez. MSN seemed like an unstoppable force. Then, their progress stalled. Neymar went nearly two months without scoring a league goal. Suarez has done well scoring but seems to be misfiring as of late as evidenced against tough teams Celta Vigo and Sevilla. True, he did score the game winner against Real Madrid but he squandered chances to add to his tally in that game. The fact he has not given an assist in over a month is another concern. Messi will always be amazing but the fact he has playing with an injured foot has to be of some concern with the team heading down the final stretch.

Barça kick off a sequence of four tough matches this week. First up is Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday followed by Valencia at home on Saturday. Barça then host Paris Saint-Germain again on Tuesday before facing Espanyol in the Barcelona derby the following weekend. If Barça gets out of that unscathed, then the sky’s the limit. However, Barça needs to snap out of their recent funk and hope that the Three Tenors get their mojo back.

Barça Must Remain Focused.

Back from the international break, Barça must remain focused as they enter the final and most difficult part of the season.

Yesterday’s 1-0 victory against Celta Vigo showed that Barça cannot ill afford a lapse in concentration against any opponent. Barça face a tricky month where they are playing a match twice a week. They will have to be focused for both the Spanish league crown and the UEFA Champions League.

The powers that be have our beloved Blaugrana playing the likes of Sevilla, PSG and Valencia in consecutive order this month. PSG will be missing some starters for the first leg and hopefully Barça do not take them lightly. The memories of Barça getting beaten by a Milan side missing a few of their starters in the 1994 Champions League Final still lingers.

What is certain is that Barça can somewhat calm their nerves, if Barça manage to obtain a victory in Paris by a big margin. This crazy month will be key in how Barça will finish the season. There are only 9 matches left and I have always been a firm believer that the season always comes down to the final five matches. They cannot win any titles this month but they can lose one or both of them this month.

Barça control their destiny and hopefully players like Neymar, and Dani Alves find their mojo and we see the dangerous Barça team we saw after the Real Sociedad loss. We cannot keep relying on Messi on bailing this team out every month, especially with his current foot injury. The final months of the season are upon us and we need every player to stay focused on and off the pitch.

Neymar’s Alarming Second Half Slump.

For the second season in a row, Neymar’s form has been disappointing. Although last year’s dip was expected, this year’s slump is surprising.

Last season, I discussed the difficult challenge that awaited Neymar during the second half of his debut season for Barça. History has shown us that most recent Barça transfers have sizzled in the first half of the season only to fizzle in the ensuing second half. Sadly, history repeated itself when Neymar joined the likes of Ibrahimovic and Cesc in disappearing in the second half of the season.

The reasons, or excuses, for Neymar’s slump were because of the injury he suffered back in January along with the never ending controversy surrounding his transfer that affected him mentally. I suggested he should have been benched back then but of course, it is rare to find a manager not named Pep Guardiola who would dare to bench an expensive signing. Sadly, Barça and Neymar’s season both fizzled out in disappointing fashion.

However, this season was supposed to be different. With a year under his belt, Neymar was supposed to have gotten used to playing for Barça,and in Europe, and showed signs of improvement. It had happened with Henry during his time with Barça, and Neymar was off to a great start this season. However, we are now witnessing consecutive slumps by the Brazilian superstar at a time when the club really needs him.

The Three Tenors were an unstoppable force but suddenly, it has become the Messi & Company show. Barça are entering the most crucial stage of the season and Neymar needs to find his groove back. Without a doubt, it is frustrating for him and for the fans. We all want a fully functioning Barça team causing havoc. For that to happen though, Neymar needs to cool it with the on field squabbles with opponents, and the off field distractions and just start playing better. Messi may be amazing, but as we witnessed yesterday, and the second half of last season, he still needs the players around him to step up too. Hopefully Neymar finds his groove back soon.