Champions League: Group F preview ~ Barça’s Quest for Fifth Title Begins.

FC Barcelona kick off a new UEFA Champions League campaign which sees them facing familiar foes and a new competitor. New manager Luis Enrique will get his first ever taste in Champions League football as a manager. Will he able to duplicate the success of Guardiola in getting the Blaugrana back to the Promised Land?

FC Barcelona’s foes in this season’s Champions League group stages are Paris Saint-Germain F.C., Ajax Amsterdam, and APOEL FC. Luis Enrique will kick off his managerial debut in the Champions League with his side hosting the Cypriot side APEOL FC at the Camp Nou in Match Day 1. This is APOEL’s third appearance in the group stages with their last visit seeing the club from the small island in the Mediterranean Sea reaching all the way to the Quarter-Finals before falling to Real Madrid. Their other experience against La Liga teams in this competition came in 2009-2010 season where they were grouped with Atlético Madrid and finished fourth behind Chelsea, Porto and Atlético respectively. Current APOEL players John Arne Riise, with Liverpool, and Tiago Gomes, with Hercules CF, both tasted victories with their respective teams at the Camp Nou against FC Barcelona.  APEOL’s Urko Pardo is also a former member of La Masia and was a member of the 2004-2005 Barça B team. Meanwhile, Ivan Rakitić, with FC Schalke 04, faced APOEL in the 2008-2009 UEFA Cup first round and scored a goal against them.

FC Barcelona also renew acquaintances with Ajax Amsterdam and Paris Saint-Germain F.C this season. Despite both club’s long history in European football, last season was the first time Barça and Ajax faced one another in European competition. Both sides tasted victory on home soil with Barça enjoying a 4-0 victory at the Camp Nou while Ajax won 2-1 in Amsterdam. Both APOEL and Ajax are expected to fight each other for third and fourth place in this group. Ajax’s domestic campaign is off to a poor start while APOEL has two heavy weights to deal with which might be a tall order for the small club. Upsets however do occur so don’t write them off just yet.

PSG are considered Barça’s rivals for the top spot of the group. Barça will once again face former players, Zlatan Ibrahimović, Maxwell and Thiago Motta. Ibra and Maxwell also represented Ajax and Barça together in the past so this will be a reunion tour of some sort. This is the first time both teams meet in the group stages. Their recent encounter took place in the 2012-2013 Quarter-Finals where Barça eliminated PSG on away goals following a 3-3 aggregate result. Barça and PSG faced each other in the 1994-1995 Champions League Quarter-Finals stage where PSG upset Cruyff’s Dream Team by winning 3-2 on aggregate. Barça did however defeat PSG 1-0 a few years later in the 1997 UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup final. The final group match will feature Barça hosting PSG in what could be a pivotal match for qualification to the knock out stages as group winners or a lack luster affair where the top two spots have been decided and will feature role and youth players.

Luis Enrique’s last encounter as a manager in European competition came with Roma when they were upset in the 2011-2012 Europa League playoffs by Slovan Bratislava. Luis Enrique suffered criticism for his handling of that tie and he will now get a second chance to improve his record in European competition. Nevertheless, there are lingering questions for Barça for this upcoming Champions League campaign.

Will Lucho pull an Ancelotti and go with a different starting keeper for Champions League action and one for league action? Claudio Bravo has been his starter in all 3 league matches but with Ter Stegen deemed fit, will Luis Enrique give the young German keeper his first competitive debut or will the manager stick with Claudio Bravo. With Luis Suarez set to miss the first three matches of the group stage, will Lucho go with experience in Neymar and Pedro or trust his young starlets Munir and Sandro to start up front with Messi or mix it up?

Champions League never gets dull regardless of what group your club is in. Barça kick off their campaign in a group that has a bit history in terms of rivalry, influence, and underdog elements to it. Tomorrow will see Barça begin a new quest and for the Blaugrana faithful, one can hope it ends in success on June 6^th in Berlin.

First Clásico For Big Two Managers.

For the first time in a decade, we are about to witness El Clásico featuring managers in their first ever El Clásico. Gerardo “Tata” Martino and his side will host Carlo Ancelotti this weekend in what will be their first ever encounter as managers of the big two clubs in Spain. As both men prepare their teams for this upcoming clash of arch rivals, one manager seems to have his team playing the way he wants to play while another is juggling between finding the right system and lineup of his liking.

For the first time in a decade, we are about to witness El Clásico featuring managers in their first ever El Clásico. Gerardo “Tata” Martino and his side will host Carlo Ancelotti this weekend in what will be their first ever encounter as managers of the big two clubs in Spain. As both men prepare their teams for this upcoming clash of arch rivals, one manager seems to have his team playing the way he wants to play while another is juggling between finding the right system and lineup of his liking.

Even though both clubs have went through managers over the past few years, this upcoming Clásico will feature for the first time in a decade new managers for both clubs. Although 2008-2009 season saw Pep Guardiola face Juande Ramos, Ramos was hired  with only a few days to prepare for El Clasico. You have to go back to first year of the Frank Rijkaard era when he tried to match wits against Real Madrid’s new manager, Carlos Queiroz. Both managers had a proper summer to prepare their teams. By the time El Clasico rolled around, Rijkaard and the Blaugrana were struggling to find any form while Queiroz and his Galacticos were sitting atop of the league table with a ten point lead over Barça. That December night in Barcelona saw Real Madrid finally win a league game at the Camp Nou for the first time since 1983. 

The second half of that season though would not only see Barça exact revenge by winning at the Santiago Bernabéu, but would reduce the 10 point gap to just 4 points before eventually surpassing them in the standings. At the time, Real Madrid were battling Valencia for the league title which Valencia would end up winning. Real Madrid’s season spiraled out of control after losing to Barça by losing all of their remaining fixtures and finish fourth while Barça ended the season in second place.

While Queiroz had the great start, the late season collapse saw him get fired while Rijkaard would remain with the club and guide them to consecutive league titles and the club’s second ever Champions League title. Quite a contrast when you look back at the awful December night for Blaugrana fans who were wondering if this team was ever going to return to its days of prominence. 

Which brings us to this weekend’s upcoming El Clásico. Tata Martino is off to a record breaking start for a new Barça manager, while his adversary Carlo Ancelotti, is off to a somewhat rocky start and has failed to impress in the Spanish league during this early part of the season. Martino’s only issues have been injuries to key players who are now cleared, with the exception of Jordi Alba, to return to action. Meanwhile, Ancelotti will have to try to figure out who to start and who to bench, especially Gareth Bale, and figure out the right system. It’s not easy when the club directors are involved in the lineups that has Casillas on the bench and Bale rushed into action instead of being brought along slowly after not having a proper preseason to stay in shape this past summer. 

 Not much is different about this upcoming Clásico clash and that December night in the Camp Nou ten years ago.  Only the roles have been reversed with the Blaugrana atop of the standings and adjusting well to a new manager and playing the role of the hunted. Meanwhile, Los Blancos are still trying to figure it out and play the hunter as they try to keep pace with the league leaders. We will see if history will repeats itself this weekend and the remainder of the season too. Nothing will be decided this weekend since the domestic league is always decided in the final five matches. We have a lot of games left and it will be interesting to see how this season plays out the rest of the way.

In Tito We Trust?

Tito Vilanova’s first year as manager saw him recapture the league title from Real Madrid. Finishing with 100 points and 15 points ahead of Real Madrid were a historic first for the club. Nevertheless, there are issues swirling over the club regarding Tito Vilanova and if he is the right managerial choice? Issues range from not resting his players, ignoring the bench and the younger players and his overall health? Thu, is Tito still the man to lead this club?

Without a doubt, Tito is going to be managing FC Barcelona next season. His first year was successful what with the club recapturing the league crown from arch rivals Real Madrid in historic fashion. The 100 point milestone and finishing 15 points ahead second place Real Madrid was one for the ages. Yet, the season ended on a sour note following Barça’s elimination by Real Madrid in the Copa del Rey Semi-Finals and getting hammered by Bayern Munich 7-0 aggregate in UEFA Champions League Semi-Finals. Doubts remain about whether he is the right manager to lead the club due to issues regarding his tactics, lineup selections, health, transfer plans and his handling of Barça B players have warranted plenty of second guessing.

The most important issue is his health. Tito’s first year put his health back in the spotlight when he had to seek medical treatment in New York. Fortunately, he was able to return and finish the season as FC Barcelona’s manager.  However, there will be lingering doubts of whether Tito’s health will suffer a setback just as it did last season. The club perhaps addressed that when they signed Girona’s manager, Rubi, to be one of Tito’s assistants for next season. The train of thought is that Rubi would step in, instead of Jordi Roura, if Tito would have to take another medical leave of absence. However, will that be a step in the right direction if we witness the club struggling again while Tito is in New York?

The other issue is Tito’s style of coaching. The transition from Pep Guardiola to Tito Vilanova saw the team change their style a bit and be a bit more direct. Their defending though regressed as they leaked plenty soft goals far too often.  Yes, they did end up winning the league title and made it to the semi-finals of both Copa del Rey and the UEFA Champions League.

Yet, questions still linger about his coaching. Tito stepping into the shoes of Pep Guardiola reminded me a lot of Barry Switzer taking over of the NFL Dallas Cowboys from Jimmy Johnson. Jimmy Johnson had taken his team, from being an irrelevant team, to two consecutive titles before leaving on bad terms with the team owner Jerry Jones. Barry Switzer came in and won the title in his second year. However, Switzer’s accomplishment was downplayed because of the talented players he inherited from Johnson. The same argument could be made for Vilanova.

Barça’s great start to their league campaign was simply one for the ages. Barça managed to record 55 points out of a possible 57 from their first 19 league matches. Tito received a lot of the acclaim for that feat but the players also played a significant role in that achievement. Graham Hunter indicated that Barça players were still upset at how they lost the league to Mourinho’s Real Madrid and during the preseason, they “made an informal pact” to seek revenge on all those clubs that they dropped points to away during that 2011-2012 season. So was it the Tito factor or Barça players hell-bent on revenge factor?

Furthermore, one of the main criticisms of Tito’s coaching was his lack of plan B. Many times, we saw Tito stick with the same plan and just switch players. That was evident while he was away in New York and after he returned to the dugout.  Many thought that Roura was not up to the task of coaching this talented bunch of players but Tito’s coaching after his return just made it seem obvious that Tito was the one calling the shots at all times. However, his management was met with many second guessing.

For far too long, the Blaugrana faithful have witnessed their team struggle in the second half of the season. Players were fatigued and on the brink of exhaustion brought on from appearing in too many matches. The lack of players’ rotation and resting of key players were on display when Bayern Munich destroyed Barça in both legs of their UEFA Champions League Semi-Finals.  To many, that could have been avoided just by Tito rotating his squad more often, especially after the title had been somewhat secured halfway through the season once Barça enjoyed a 12 point lead over Real Madrid.

Moreover, Tito’s treatment of the Barça B players and his bench bordered on the line of stubbornness or neglectful. There was no reason that Messi should have featured in insignificant matches such as the final group stage match against Benfica were he suffered an injury scare or playing him so soon after returning from international duty. Why didn’t the likes of Bartra, Montoya, and Tello play more often? Tello did not feature against Bayern Munich and wasn’t even on the bench for the 1st leg, played only 10 minutes against PSG and a total of 35 minutes in the Cup and league Clásico encounters that fell on the same week back in late February/early March.

Another negative lasting impact from that Bayern Munich drubbing was Vilanova waiting till the 83rd minute before he made his first substitution when Barça were down 4-0. Was that a testament to his lack of faith in his bench, and if so, will that change next season? Why did he not make his changes sooner and keep the score at a respectable level rather than trust his men and watch them surrender two more goals?  Additionally, why did he not play the younger players in the second leg that had the energy to perhaps rise to the occasion? Tito did not give the start to Tello, Montoya and Thiago and instead opted to go with the likes of Xavi who had already thrown in the towel after the first leg when he admitted that a comeback was “practically impossible”.

Speaking of Thiago, Barça are now about to lose him to Manchester United because his buy-out clause went from €90 million to €18 million because of a contract clause was not triggered after he failed to complete 60% of Barça’s games. Thiago was not too pleased with the lack of playing time from Tito, and the club now faces the possibility of losing a prized gem for a low amount because someone did not read the fine print. Thiago is not alone with the likes of Tello, Bartra, and diamond in the rough Gerard Deulofeu also rumored to be going on loan to other teams.

Finally, the other issue of concern is Tito’s taste for players during the transfer window period. Barça’s need for a center back was obvious last summer and yet the club signed Alex Song. The project to see the defensive midfielder perform as a center back was a failure and with Puyol’s health and career in doubt, along with the club not bringing back Abidal, center back position has to be addressed. Word has it that Tito only wants Thiago Silva and is not considering any other player. If true, then his fixation with the Brazilian center back is a big cause of alarm when you take into consideration the player’s age, price tag and history of injuries.  You would expect a manager to be open-minded and look at the big picture.

Next season will be very interesting indeed. The tide has shifted this summer since Barça’s opponents have improved with the likes of Bayern Munich hiring Guardiola, Manchester City hiring Manuel Pellegrini, Chelsea has Mourinho back, and Real Madrid hiring Carlo Ancelotti. The competition has improved and Barça, along with their fans, will discover whether they have the right man to lead them.  Thu, is Tito still the man to lead this club? Hopefully Tito learned from his first season in charge.  If not, then Barça face the risk of playing catch up by searching for a new manager and wasting away the talents of Messi and company.