Will there be an inevitable divorce between Barça and Messi?

A week ago, there was panic in Barcelona over the comments made by Messi and his father about his future with Barça. A week later, we are celebrating Messi becoming the all-time goal scorer in Spanish league history and UEFA Champions League history. It has been all smiles for Messi but the question remains; will there be an inevitable divorce between Barça and Messi? History has shown that it is likely.

First of all off, congratulations to Messi on breaking two historic scoring records. Messi made his debut ten years ago and it was unfathomable that he would go on to accomplish so many feats with the Blaugrana. Where he ranks amongst the greatest players of all-time is up for debate. What is not debatable is that he is Barça’s greatest player of all time.

Barça have had many great players over the years and the majority share one thing in common; unhappy exits from the club. Throughout the history of the Blaugrana, many big name stars have exited the club for different reasons. It is very rare to see players retire as Barça players. Paulino Alcántara, Rexach, Migueli, Luis Enrique and Puyol are just some that come to mind that did. Some players in their mid-30’s, such as Cesar Rodriguez, left where their services were not needed and the players felt they still had some football left in them . Pep was 30 and wanted to play in other leagues. Kubala, the man the Camp Nou was built for, retired as a Barça player to become a youth manager before becoming the first team manager. However, his Barça coaching career did not last long and he was dismissed. Kubala wanted to still play for Barça but the club was not interested and he became a player manager for Espanyol where he teamed up with Real Madrid legend, Alfredo Di Stefano.

Barça’s first ever Golden Ball winner, Luis Suarez, exited the club because of financial reasons. The club had to cash in on their star player after they fell upon hard financial times. One of Barça’s first superstars, Josep Samitier, starred for Barça between 1919-1932. Unfortunately, he would become the first in a long line of Barça players who clashed with the board and left the club as a result. Samitier and the club had their differences and he left to join Real Madrid.

Maradona and Schuster both clashed with egotistical Barça president Núnez in the 80’s that saw Maradona get sold to Napoli while Schuster followed in Samitier’s path and joined Real Madrid when his contract ended. Others, such as Michael Laudrup and Romario had differences with Barça manager Johan Cruyff. Romario was off loaded after being in Cruyff’s doghouse following the 1994 World Cup success, while Michael Laudrup also joined the ranks of former Barça players to depart the club and join arch rivals Real Madrid. Laudrup was not selected by Cruyff for the 1994 European Cup Final because of the foreign players quotas at the time, so he joined Real Madrid the following season when his contract ended. There is also rumor that another reason why Cruyff dropped him was that Laudrup was fooling around with Cruyff’s daughter. Cruyff also had his problems with Barça president Núnez who ultimately fired the legendary manager.

Brazilians were no exception either after Romario. Brazilian legend Ronaldo also left the club after just one season after contract negotiations for a new contract fell apart and Inter ended up breaking the transfer fee record for him. Rivaldo on the other had problems with both the board and the manager Louis van Gaal and in the end, Rivaldo’s contract was terminated when Louis van Gaal was brought back to manage the club for a second stint. Ronaldinho went from savior to persona non-grata after many, including manager Pep Guardiola, thought he had lost his way and had become a negative influence on Messi. Brazilian born but Portuguese naturalized Deco had a quiet exit and joined Chelsea.

Even during Pep Guardiola’s era, Barça still had messy divorces with star players. This was however because of the manager, and not the board. Pep Guardiola tolerated the likes of Eto’o and Ibrahimovic for one season before ridding them from the club following clash of personalities. Even the return of the so-called prodigal son, Cesc Fábregas, lasted a few season before he was sold to Chelsea. More recently, Victor Valdés’s exit left a bitter taste for many Blaugrana faithful. Valdés never indicated his reason for leaving but there were whispers that he was not fond of the current Barça board, especially after not hiring his choice of goalkeeper coach when the position became available.

In a rarity, Hristo Stoichkhov left the club twice during the 90’s. The first time because of a deteriorating relationship with manager Johan Cruyff, and he was sold to Parma. He returned when Bobby Robson was the manager but his second exit, this time because of another Dutch manager, van Gaal, where the manager’s tactics were criticized by the Bulgarian Golden Ball winner. Hristo would leave the team and play in different countries before concluding his career in the MLS.

So what about Messi? Will he remain a Barça player till the day he retires or will he end up playing elsewhere else? As much as I am a football romantic, I am also a realist. History has shown us that the chances of Messi retiring as a Barça player are slim. Not one Barça Golden Ball winner has ever retired with this club. The comments from Messi and his father served as a warning shot to the board to not mistreat the player. It also enforced the belief that Messi will never leave the club unless the club wanted to sell him first. Hopefully, the next Barça board to take over from this inept board, and soon,  will make sure Messi stays with the club for a long time…….before he leaves Barça near the end of his career to play in Argentina for his childhood club, Newell’s Old Boys. At least that way, it will not be a messy divorce.

Barça Needs To Clean House.

Barça’s disappointing culmination on what seemed to be a promising season is coming to a bitter end. The hopes of capturing the league crown remain miraculous at best since it is no longer in their hands. With the FIFA transfer ban on hiatus now, the club can make new signings. If the club’s proclamation that new players will be bought is true, then it’s time they clean house; from top to bottom.

This season has been a roller coaster for Barça fans with lots of highs and lows. It was also nostalgic to the 2003-2004 and the 2006-2007 seasons to which I alluded to earlier in the season. 2003-2004 saw two new managers, Frank Rijkaard and Carlos Queiroz, take charge at Barça and Madrid, while 2006-2007 was a nightmare of a season for the Blaugrana where they saw their lead atop of the standings disappear down the stretch and finish runners-up.

I gave Tata Martino the benefit of the doubt earlier in the season but that sailed away following his questionable decisions that saw this team squander their five point lead atop of the standings and kiss good bye to any chance of silverware the past few weeks. Clearly, this hiring has back fired and is yet another black eye for Sandro Rosell who made the decision to hire Tata in the first place. To be fair to Tata, he did request new players which were never provided, much like what Carlos Queiroz endured back in 2003-2004. They both squandered big leads atop of the standings down the stretch, lost in the Copa del Rey Final and exited the Champions League prematurely. Now, Tata falls on the sword that was set in place by this board. In order to go forward, we still need someone new to manage these players and someone who has ties to the club.

Speaking of players, I have been always of the opinion that this team needed to be gutted for a long time. This team could easily see over ten players leave in the summer. Puyol already indicated his career as a Barça player was over and Valdés had his bags packed since last season before he suffered his injury. Injured players such as Jonathan Dos Santos, Afellay, and Cuenca are also surplus to requirements. It’s also time for the club to look into cashing in on Tello, Alex Song, Mascherano and Alexis. Tello hardly plays and if Deulofeu returns from his loan spell at Everton; then he should be getting those minutes instead. As for Alex Song, it was doomed from the start and if Napoli want him, and Mascherano, then cash in on them. Mascherano has played his heart out for the club but is not a defender and will hardly feature as Busquets’s substitute. There’s already talk of Alexis joining Juventus and after three years, it’s time to cut our losses and realize he has the energy of Eto’o but is not a factor against defensive minded teams. There are some fans who are also considering selling Cesc and I can’t blame them after he managed to pull off his disappearing act in the second half of a season for three straight years now. As for Dani Alves, he no longer is the player he once was and his mouth seems to be turning off the fans more than his endless crosses to no one and that could be his final season as a Barça player.

 Thus, that’s eleven players who might not be a part of this team next season. However, before we discuss which players come in to reshape this team, we need to discuss the resignation of this board first. Current Barça president Bartomeu and his board need to resign after sitting on their thumbs and not reinforcing this squad when it was obvious last season. Zubizarreta has done an abysmal job when it comes to signing players and by all means should not be entrusted in future transfers. No, if a revolution is needed, then it needs to start from the top with the board stepping down and allowing someone competent to come in and hire a new manager and have a competent sporting director who knows how to scout and sign players to strengthen this team again. Unless that happens, this team will not progress and just continue to frustrate the Blaugrana faithful and squander the talents of Iniesta and Messi.

Time for Cesc to Deliver.

For the third year in a row, Cesc seems to be mired in another second half collapse.  After a superb start to the season, Cesc is fizzling down the stretch. With three titles at arm’s length, it’s time for Cesc to step up and be a contributor on this team.

If there’s ever been a player that has failed to impress many Barça fans, it would be Cesc. The saga of him leaving the club and the subsequent pursuit in bringing back the prodigal son made the signing of Cesc  seem as the next big of the puzzle. Expectations were high that Cesc would be a perfect fit for Barça and he would be able to spell Xavi and be his successor yet those expectations have not been met.

Cesc kicked off this season with an impressive eight goals to go along with nine assists in the first half of the season. Sadly, his second half of the season is nothing much to write home about. He has only scored one goal and three assists so far. Perhaps it’s no coincidence that he performed so well when Messi was out of action. However, he has yet to figure out how to gel with the other players. Acceptance of his futility can be tolerated for so long before patience runs out.

Cesc and others need to step it up as the season nears an end. Another finale remembered for Cesc pulling off another disappearing act will be too much to bear. Another disappearing act might also be time to re-examine signing other players who can be contributors and if it’s also time for Cesc to be deemed expendable.

Neymar Second Half Challenge Awaits.

 Neymar’s arrival at Barça has been a positive one for the club. He has done a great job in fitting in with the team and has impressed on the pitch. His performance during Messi’s absence even gave the fans a sense of reassurance as the club entered the New Year as league leaders and still in the running for all three competitions. However, Neymar faces a difficult challenge as the second half of the season commences where most recent Barça transfers have sizzled in the first half of the season only to fizzle in the ensuing second half.

 Neymar kicked off his Barça career with the equalizer goal in the first leg of the Supercopa that turned out to be difference in a 1-1 aggregate tie against Atlético Madrid. Neymar didn’t blow us away with his performances early on but then again, it is rather difficult to shine while Messi is around. Nonetheless, Neymar has been superb in fitting in with the team and being a team player.  When Messi went down, Neymar adequately stepped up and his first half stats read as follows – 11 goals and 10 assists in all competitions in 1st half. 

 Neymar will miss this weekend’s match against Elche as her serves a ban for collecting five cautions. His return coincides with Messi’s return following a lengthy spell on the sidelines recovering from an injury. One wonders if Neymar will regress or continue to impress for the second half of the season where the competition will get tougher domestically and in Europe.  Recent history has shown us that those who have a strong start to their Barça debut reach a disappointing finale. 

 Cesc and Zlatan Ibrahimovic come to mind as those who were remarkable in their Barça debuts and then struggled down the stretch. Cesc’s first half of the season saw him mostly come off the bench and help the team. Some of his achievements consisted of scoring a great header goal in San Mames against Bilbao along with insurance goals in the UEFA Super Cup against Porto, against Real Madrid in the Bernabéu in league action and in the FIFA Club World Cup Final against Santos. Unfortunately, his form would dip following the New Year. Although he did score 17 goals in all competitions in his first season, he only managed to score four goals in the second half of the season. Those four goals were scored in January and February and Cesc would go on an absurd dry run until the rest of the season. That dry run meant he could not score for three months and resulted in him becoming an unused substitute or be substituted in the second half if he was to start. 

 Ibrahimovic also endured a similar fate during his lone season with the club. Ibra won three titles as he featured in the Supercopa, UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup. Unlike Cesc, he did not manage to score in either of those games but he did score the only goal at the Camp Nou against Real Madrid. Ibra’s first half with Barça saw him score 11 goals in all competitions and he and Messi seemed like the dynamic duo upfront. However, the second half was one to forget as Ibra’s form suffered immensely coupled with some injuries as he only managed to score 9 goals, two of them in a memorable encounter against Arsenal in London. His popularity nosedived after poor performances against Inter Milan and his criticism of Guardiola made him persona non-grata and was then sold to AC Milan.

It’s not easy to play for Barça. Over the years, we have seen players struggle to fit in with Barça such as Mark Hughes, Hagi, Zambrotta, and Ibrahimovic. Neymar returns to face Getafe in the cup tie and Atlético Madrid next week. He has from now to May to beat that trend. The competition will be tougher and the backlash will be fierce if Barça stumble along the way. Hopefully Neymar will be the one to buck that trend where his challenge is to continue to do well and even step it up for the second half of the season.

Messi’s Outrage A Warning To Barça Board.

Messi’s comments a few days ago to a radio station were unexpected but not surprising. Messi personally calling out a Barça director on the air and insulting him showed us a side of Messi that we had never seen before. However, to say this was unforeseeable is a bit naïve. Barça board needs to change their way of handling things and Messi’s outburst was a warning of things to come.

Barcelona VP Javier Faus idiotic statement that he saw no reason the club should improve Messi’s contract and referring to Messi as “un senyor (this gentleman)” were unnecessary and continued the club’s pattern of alienating important Barça figures. It is no surprise that Cruyff and Guardiola are not part of the club’s current regime but they are playing with fire if they want to include Messi in this group.

Messi responded soon afterwards in a manner we had not been accustomed to seeing before. He called Mr. Faus as someone who "knows nothing about football." Of course Messi was not having a great week what with Madrid media trying to drag his family’s name into the mud with bogus stories about ties to drug trafficking. It was an attempt to find Messi guilty in the court of public opinion and Cesc came to his teammate’s rescue by indicating this was all “An Anti-Messi Agenda”. Obviously the club cannot sue the Madrid media on his behalf but the last thing they should be doing is piling on during this difficult time for the magical player.

This board seems to be run by men who treat the club as a business and not as a club. These players are not assets, but actual human beings. The club should not haggle with Iniesta over one million Euros during contract renewals nor should they be discussing in public whether Messi deserves a new contract. Messi has been a godsend for this club and should always treat him as not just the greatest player in club’s history, but also as the greatest player in the history of football.

Barça’s board need to be proactive and not reactive in the way they run this club. Thus, Messi should always get a new deal if Ronaldo or anyone else gets a new contract which pays them more than Messi. So when club president Sandro Rosell says door to his office is always open, he is missing the point. Barça should be the ones going to Messi with a new deal already on paper and not waiting for Messi to come to any office. That way of thinking is dangerous because while the board is waiting for Messi to knock on their door, another club might be knocking on Messi’s door at the same time.

 

History does not favor Del Bosque and La Roja

Spain punched their ticket to the 2014 World Cup a few days ago where they will get to play against the best of the world for the World Cup. This also means that Vicente Del Bosque will also get the rare chance to manage his team to a second consecutive World Cup crown. However, the odds are against Del Bosque as he faces an onerous challenge to do where others have failed before him.

Del Bosque and Spain have a tall task ahead of them. The last team to repeat as World Cup champions were Brazil back in 1958 and 1962. A few teams have appeared in consecutive finals but failed to win both times. Argentina back in 1986 and 1990 along with Brazil 1994 and 1998 come to mind. Both teams failed to repeat with Argentina under the helm of the same manager while Brazil had a different manager in their second final.

Carlos Bilardo was the man who helped guide Argentina to their second World Cup title back in 1986 against Germany. He did not step down following that glorious moment for himself and his country, and four years later, his team made it to the World Cup final where they faced Germany yet again. In what was one of the most forgettable finals ever, Germany defeated Argentina to dash Argentina’s hopes of repeating as champions.

Brazil won their fourth World Cup crown back in 1994 and were back in the final four years later in 1998. Carlos Alberto Parreira was the man who steered Brazil to success in 1994 but would coach Saudi Arabia for the 1998 edition. Instead, it was Mário Zagallo, who actually was part of the 1958 and 1962 Brazil teams, that steered his side to the World Cup final before falling to the hosts, France. Parreira did get another shot at winning it with Brazil in 2006 but that team came up short.

More recently, Marcello Lippi attempted to guide the Italian national team to a second consecutive World Cup final, following their World Cup triumph in 2006. However, Lippi and Italy would also fail in repeating as champions as they could not even advance from the group stages. All three countries saw their attempts at repeating come up just short or crash and burn, and Del Bosque can afford to learn from those three managerial counterparts.

If there is anything you can criticize Del Bosque for, it could be on his reliance on the old guard. Many thought he should have dropped Fernando Torres after World Cup 2010 but there he was scoring in another European final two years later and participating in last summer’s Confederations Cup as well. Many believed that Del Bosque should have used the Confederations Cup to test his younger players and not subject his veterans to another busy summer.  Surely that was the downfall of Lippi when his faith in the old guard, while disregarding young talent, did not pan out four years after winning their  World Cup.

Thus, Del Bosque will have to think hard about which players he will take to Brazil this summer. Does he stick with David Villa and Torres, or move on and put his hopes on the likes of Negredo and Michu? Will he use Cesc more often than Xavi and will he start César Azpilicueta over Arbeloa? It is a fine line between depending on veterans and over relying on them. Many believe Parreira made a grave mistake after he opted to go with the veterans in World Cup 2006 and not with the young players that participated and won the Confederations Cup the previous summer.

Furthermore, Del Bosque also has to be worried about fatigue and compliance. For some of his men, this will be their second World Cup, and sixth tournament if you count Confederations Cups as major tournaments. That is a lot of wear and tear on those players who have been representing club and country in over 70 matches a year. Will they have the energy to compete for another World Cup title?

Better yet, are they still hungry for another World Cup crown? Bilardo’s Argentina  were lively and threatening in 1986 but appeared bloated and lethargic four years later. We saw recently how Real Madrid came out flat after winning the league title under Mourinho while Barça fans still recall how their team under Rijkaard became complacent after winning the Champions League. The feeling of working hard and finally achieving the goal you have long strived for is rather unique and irreplaceable. It is also much more difficult to duplicate that motivation after you had already tasted success. Can Del Bosque take some comfort that the sting from Spain’s 3-0 loss to Brazil in the Confederation Cup Final could provide him with players hell bent on revenge?

The World Cup is 236 days away. That’s plenty of time for Del Bosque to decide on what path will he take. Will he avoid making the same mistakes that other managers have made in the past and select younger players who have not featured for Spain and are hungry to duplicate the same success that their idols have attained? Many envy to be in the position of Del Bosque however, I see it as a daunting position to be given the task that many have failed to overcome. History is against him but perhaps Del Bosque can learn from where others have failed and perhaps make Spain can surprise us once again.

Martino’s Challenging Tasks Ahead.

Gerardo ‘Tata’ Martino will be the man on the touchline for Barça’s upcoming season. He comes from Argentina with an impressive resume but without any European coaching experience. That is one of the many challenging tasks that Tata will face when the season kicks off this month.

Another season brings us another new face on Barça’s touchline yelling instructions to the Blaugrana players. Pep, Tito and now Tata will get to experience the hot seat of Barça manager. His experience overseas is not at all shabby. However, there was some concern about whether Tata is the man qualified to direct the side.

His first challenge will be to earn the players’ respect. It seems like he is slowly winning them over but preseason is preseason for a reason; it is not the real deal yet. Will he win them over when the going gets tough? Will he treat all the players equally or will he have his favorites? Respect is a two way street and it has to be earned. However, Tata needs to win these guys over quickly and ensure a good start to the season.

Another challenge for Tata will be strengthening Barça’s defense.  Barça’s Achilles heel these past two seasons has been their careless defending. The sloppy defending and lack of depth has hindered the team for far too long. He has to make sure Puyol is well rested. He has to make sure that Pique plays like a Barça leader, not as a Barça fan. Tata has to sort it out once and for all or else Barça will only continue to make it more difficult for themselves by conceding silly goals. He also has to make sure the club buys him a center back or two. As of this moment, that appears less likely to occur.

Furthermore, Tata will get the chance to rectify a problem that has plagued Barça for the past few seasons. Both Pep and Tito always seemed to watch their players struggle down the stretch with fatigue and injuries that caused them to come up short. Tata will have to ensure that players will be rotated in order to preserve them for that final push as they chase a potential treble. That means making sure Messi does not play every single match and giving Xavi and other key starters a game off here and there.

Additionally, Tata has to ensure the youth players are not ignored. Last season, we saw the likes of Bartra, Thiago, Montoya and Tello get ignored in big games. They were either glued to the bench or up in the stands watching their fellow teammates. Tata has to give valuable minutes to the youth players or else those with Barça B will start contemplating going elsewhere when they see they are shunned from the first team.  We cannot afford losing the likes of Thiago when they see minutes are hard to come by and have big clubs after their services.

Finally, the last challenge will be for him to win. As, Al Davis, the former owners of the NFL Oakland Raiders team, once said, “Just win, baby!” Whatever problems the club is facing, having Barça get off to a good start will beneficial to Tata. . I am always a firm believer that it is not how you start, but it’s how you finish. Last season was the perfect example of Barça starting great only to fizzle down the stretch.  Thus, Tata is tasked with this great responsibility of beginning a new chapter in the history of FC Barcelona. Hopefully his accomplishment will be worthy to fill the upcoming blank pages in Barça’s history books.

 

2012-2013 End of Season Awards.

The 2012-2013 season just concluded and our beloved Barça competed for four cups. In the end, they succeeded in winning one out of four competitions by capturing their 22nd league title and ended the season on a positive note when they managed to reach 100 points and finish 15 points ahead of Real Madrid atop of the standings. So, as we enjoy the summer break before another season is upon us, it’s time to hand out the awards.

A season in transition as Tito Vilanova, and at times Jordi Roura, managed the club after Guardiola opted not to return to Barça for another season. Nevertheless, FC Barcelona continued to add trophies to the trophy case with the capture of their 22nd league title.  Sadly, there is still the lingering sting from the Bayern Munich 7-0 aggregate thrashing in their sixth consecutive UEFA Champions League Semi-Finals. Furthermore, there were some sad farewells with Abidal not returning and perhaps other players too bidding farewell to their Barça playing days.

The season started off with the team losing to Real Madrid in the Super Copa with sloppy play from Valdés and the back four would turn out to be a common theme for the rest of the season. FC Barcelona did have enjoy a great first half of the season as they were still competing in all 3 competitions and enjoyed an astonishing 18 point lead over their arch rivals, Real Madrid by setting a new Spanish record of  accumulating 55 points from 19 matches.

Unfortunately, the club failed to make use of that great gap and once again, we saw an exhausted and unfit Barça struggle in the second half of the season. Barça were eliminated by Real Madrid in the Copa del Rey Semi-Finals and could not defeat a makeshift Madrid team in league play the same week. Fatigue and injuries would also affect Barça, with Messi struggling with injuries, as they were manhandled by Bayern in the Champions League after struggling to eliminate the likes of Milan and PSG.

Barça though would end the season on a positive when they captured the league title by reaching 100 points although they would be without Messi’s services in the final month or so. Messi still managed to win another FIFA Golden Ball and won the league’s Pichichi top scorer award again. We also had to say a sad farewell to Abidal when the club announced they would not be offering the inspiration player a new deal and others might soon follow suite and leave the club as well. So, as we enjoy the summer break before another season is upon us, it’s time to hand out the awards.

MVP: MESSI.

Messi scored 38 goals from 29 matches halfway through the season. Although he was ruled out of action near the end of the season, he still managed to score 60 goals in 50 matches and win the Pichichi with 46 goals. I did state in my midseason awards that “Barring any injury, the sky is the limit for Messi as he keeps doing what he loves to do; win”. Sadly, the injury he picked up against PSG made him ineffective in the first leg of the Bayern 4-0 loss and would not feature in the second leg 3-0 loss. Nevertheless, he essentially was the big reason why this club won its 22nd league title and hopefully he will learn to take it easy next season and not play in every single match. He is human after all.

Best Goal: Messi v Athletic Bilbao

 This is usually a tough one but even though we saw some great goals so far this season from Adriano, David Villa, Iniesta, Xavi and Jordi Alba, Messi’s goal against Athletic Bilbao simply stood out from the others. It was artistic and the closest thing I have seen to resemble art in motion. Messi just simply took on four Bilbao players and displayed his amazing grace on the ball as he managed to glide each one of them before unleashing a powerful shot that Gorka could not stop. It simply was a footballing masterpiece by one of the all-time greats of the game who keeps making it look easy even when playing hurt.

Best Assist: Xavi to Villa against Milan

Barça’s style means we get to see a lot of assists but for me, Xavi’s through ball to David Villa against Milan was the best one for me this season. Barça needed a third goal against Milan and the ease with how Xavi delivered that through ball with his only touch, with such vision and precision, to find Villa inside the box was one of the best things I saw this season. Sadly, we don’t get to see too many of these superb through balls from Xavi and hopefully we’ll see more next season.

Best Game: FC Barcelona 4-0 AC Milan.

This game was nearly perfect. We saw the Barça of old that we were accustomed to seeing under Pep. Barça’s performance was daring, courageous, energetic, and totally in control. They hounded Milan all over the pitch and Messi scored a great brace in the first half before Villa and Alba scored in the second half to overcome the disappointing 2-0 first leg loss. Wish we saw more of than the rest of the way.

{youtube}32YclIvzt2w{/youtube}

 

Best Transfer: Jordi Alba.

Although his performance dipped a bit in the second half of the season, Jordi Alba still was a great transfer by Barça. As I said back in January, his arrival has been so good that people seem to forget about Dani Alves as the club’s most explosive fullback. Jordi has fit in perfectly without any adjustment period and already looks like someone who has been on this team for years. His goal against Milan will be remembered for quite a long time.

Most Improved Player: Tello.

Tello’s progression was one of the positives of the season. The young man went from the player who just aimed for the goal to one who could cause problems with his shooting and passing. Barcelona media compared some of his goals to those of Thierry Henry and it was fully justified. For some inexplicit reason, Vilanova never turned to him in the big games. He was in the stands for the first leg against Bayern and never left the bench in the second leg. The sky is the limit for Tello and here’s hoping he’ll continue to improve and that he is still with the team for next season.

Best Youth Player: Montoya.

Unfortunately, not too many young players got to play much with only Bartra and Montoya featuring when needed.  Cuenca won this last season with Tello also impressing and he did well this season too. Montoya, whenever he was not neglected by the manager, filled in for Dani Alves superbly on two different occasions against Real Madrid. He scored in the team’s final league match and one hopes he will feature more, along with Bartra, next season, and not be omitted from the squad when rotations are needed.

Most Disappointing Player: Cesc.

For the second year in a row, Cesc sadly wins this award. I was in favor of the club signing him from Arsenal but his time with the club thus far has been disappointing. He still stood out after the disappointing seasons from the likes of Pique, Mascherano, Pedro, Alexis and Dani Alves to name a few. He seemed to have finally snapped out of his funk only to fall back into during the second half of the season. Yes, it is true that he finished second behind Messi with his 11 league goals and finished the season with 14 goals and 12 assists. However, he was supposed to be a part of the puzzle for Barça. Yet, where was he for the big games? He did not feature in the 4-0 Milan win and 4-0 Bayern loss and was either a substitute or was subbed off against Madrid and PSG. This was the same problem last season but we’re still trying to figure out how to best utilize Cesc. He failed to impress on regular basis and now we have to weather a summer of transfer rumors linking him with a return to England.

2012-2013 started off with a bang and the club endured a blip in form near the end, but it was a successful one nevertheless. More importantly, we saw Abidal and Tito battle back from their medical problems and return to us which is the biggest prize of them all. Here’s hoping that next season will be even better where the awards will be less harsh on some of the players.

 

Changes Need To Be Made At Barça.

The shocking 4-0 loss to Bayern Munich rocked the foundation of FC Barcelona last week. Sure, there had been hiccups along the way this season but this was a colossal wake up call for the Blaugrana. Issues have to be addressed from the top all the way down to the players on the pitch. Changes have to be made with regards to transfers and the change of guard with regards to the veterans at the club. By no means am I saying this is the end of era but perhaps the cycle has run out and the club needs a transformation.

Bayern Munich’s 4-0 victory was a bitter pill to swallow albeit a deserved victory for the German club. Sure, there were some iffy calls and perhaps Barça’s Wembley dreams would still be alive if those goals were disallowed. Nevertheless, Barça’s effort that night was one to forget. Barça just never really got it going in the second half of the season. Barça hasn’t caught fire these past few months. Better yet, it’s safe to say the match hasn’t been struck. Last week, their lackadaisical showing cost them dearly.

Football simply comes down to scoring goals and defending well. If you can do either one well, then you have a chance at winning. If you fail to do either properly, then you will fail miserably. That was exactly what we saw in Munich last week. After that final whistle blew in Munich, the calls for end of an era started rearing its ugly head ahead once again. However, the same was said last season and the club once again was chasing a treble till last month.

Spanish media referred to “Era” as “Cicolo” which can also mean cycle. I think cycle is a better term to use here. The team has had a great run, cycle, but some changes need to be made for this team to continue to remain among the best. It first starts with club president Sandro Rosell. Rosell has made this club follow other clubs’ model with shirt sponsors, tours, deals with Arab sheiks and so forth. However, it would be nice for the club to actually sign players that the club needs and not gimmicky players who are midfielders but probably can be defenders. The club lacked a center-back and the club did not sign anyone during the summer break and are now paying the price. Rosell has to learn from this season’s mistakes and not repeat them again.

The other issue is Tito Vilanova. His coaching has come into question recently with regards to lineups, tactics and substitutions. One fatal mistake was not giving Montoya and Bartra more minutes and now, these two are set to start in the second leg of Bayern tie after gathering rust following a handful of appearances since January. What caught the ire of the fans the most was his choice of using his first substitution in the 83rd minute after the game in Munich was out of reach. Was that an indication that he did not trust his bench and subsequently, has he lost the team by ignoring the non-starters as a result?

Furthermore, Rosell and company will have to discuss with Tito whether or not his health will prevent him from coaching next season. If so, then they better start preparing their list of candidates for the coaching seat of FC Barcelona. If he does feel healthy to return, then he has to ensure that some changes will have to be made. This past weekend’s draw against Athletic displayed how Tito does not have a “Plan B” and would rather stick with “Plan A” even though it has been known to be ineffective at times. Why did he bring on Iniesta when he could have brought on another defender and have him play alongside Song to congest the midfield and support the back four?

If Plan A is not working, then sticking with it without any minor changes is not an upgrade either. Sticking to the same style is not a step in the right direction when it costs you points and victories. Perhaps he should take a page from Rijkaard’s book where for that one season he had van Bommel partner Motta or Rafa Marquez as the two defensive midfielders. If Barça keeps making the same defensive errors, then it is on him to address those problems and not ignore. As my buddy told me after Sunday’s draw, Pique is one of the most undisciplined players the club has when it comes to errors, so address it and make him better.

Sadly, I think the upcoming season will see a changing of the guards. Puyol may be retiring because of his numerous leg injuries while Valdés wants to leave the club in 2014 and Barça might want to cash in on him this summer. Also, Xavi’s legs cannot allow the legend to play week in and week out anymore. As I mentioned in the past, Achilles injuries are impossible to overcome and perhaps it’s time to slowly put him to the pasture, i.e. the bench. Xavi simply cannot play week in and week out and next season will be no exception where the club will play more midweek league matches. Xavi just doesn’t perform like he used to and most of the time, the possession and passing is more of keeping the ball than delivering that well placed sublime through ball for opponents. Rarely do we see those assists like the one he provided Villa with against Milan.

Barça cannot afford to rely to on the old guard to always be there. A perfect example would be the late 80’s/early 90’s Boston Celtics and the current Boston Celtics who relied on their veteran players on their last legs for far too long much to the detriment of the team.  Barça needs to mix it up with veterans and youth along with players in their prime. So it’s time for Puyol and Xavi to be slowly taken out of the lineup and have the team entrusted to other players such as Bartra, Thiago or even Cesc (why was he signed again?). FC Barcelona needs to start planning for the future without destroying the future.

Yet again, we are also witnessing a tired team with Messi fighting through a Semi-Final with an injury while other players seem to be sluggish and short of freshness. The talk of the club shortening the squad next season has to be re-examined after what we witnessed down the stretch the past two seasons. We need quality depth and quantity in depth.

Furthermore, a lot of attention was given to the fact that FC Barcelona have struggled recently without Messi. Some would blame it on Messi being greedy. I blame this more on the manager. It is no coincidence that Barça became more Messi reliant ever since he started trying to break goal scoring records left and right. I am not blaming it on Messi but perhaps bad habits set in with the rest of his teammates because they were interested in assisting Messi break records and haven’t shaken off the bad habit. I long for the days when Messi, Villa and Pedro were the M-V-P trio that scored 98 goals combined in the 2010-2011 season (22 goals for Pedro, 23 for Villa and 53 for Messi). Again, have they forgotten how to score or were too occupied in making sure Messi broke every record that it became a bad habit that resulted in most players standing idle as they watched Messi.

I haven’t completely given up on Barça’s chances on overturning this 4-0 result. Bayern has 6 players who are one booking away from missing the Final. Perhaps, that will be on the back of the Bayern players’ minds and slightly make them a bit more cautious. If the score is 2-0 at the half, then Barça has a strong chance. If they are losing of it is a scoreless draw, then expect a long ahead.

Overall, the era is not even close to coming to an end. It just needs some minor tinkering here and there from the top to the bottom. It’s time the club changed the mentality on how things are done in the front office and on the field. We cannot afford to waste the talent and youth of some of these players. This club can do better and should be better.

 

Barça’s Ineffective Bang for their Buck

Barça defied the tough odds and gave us a memorable performance last week against Milan. The tide shifted from disaster to optimism and hope. We saw the old Barça that we were accustomed to seeing. The great win against Milan brought back hope and the mojo this team was lacking but also brought up a question regarding the club’s recent transfers.

FC Barcelona’s official website called Barça’s 4-0 victory a magnificent comeback. You can’t argue with them there. After all, the odds were against them and there were doubts following their lethargic displays against Real Madrid. There were talks of different lineups and formation, with one in particular from Mundo Deportivo indicating that Messi would be starting in the midfield. In the end, Tito and Roura went with what worked before, the usual starters and tactics under Pep.

There was the surprise of seeing Puyol on the bench with Mascherano starting in his place. Fortunately that Mascherano error did not haunt the team and cause a whole lot of second guessing either. Ultimately, the starting eleven got it done. Coincidentally, the starting eleven in that match where the same exact starting eleven that started that UEFA Champions League Final in Wembley against Manchester United back in 2011 with the minor exception of Jordi Alba starting in place of Abidal.

As the old saying goes, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” and what we saw from that match that these guys could get it done when they played the old system. This lineup had won before and in the end, Tito and the players went back to the old system and it paid off. However, why was this system changed in the first place? Only Tito can answer that. The bigger question though is the fact that most of the club’s recent transfers were sitting on the bench with the exception of Jordi Alba.

Jordi Alba and his transfer was a god send for this team after Abidal’s health problems. The same cannot be said for the other transfers. These past two seasons has brought us new players such as Cesc, Alexis, Song and Jordi Alba. Yet, only Alba started. So what does that say about the club and its spending? These guys were signed to be an asset and help the club. However, where were they for the big game? They were on the bench and were a non-factor.

Every summer, fans discuss about the need to sign new players to help improve this team. Why was Song signed again? When will Cesc ever show us he can replace Xavi and not be a small cog in a large wheel? Will Alexis ever become a part of the solution or just a hard worker?  We have to depend on the old guard again but the investments in these players are not paying off and that is a concern when the club has to scout again and invest in new reinforcements for the club for next season. Right now, the club is not getting the maximum bang for their buck or Euros for that matter.

What we learned from the Barça-Arsenal encounter.

Is Cesc really worth it for Barça?