Should Barça Seek Reinforcements This Transfer Window?

 Barça’s recent struggles against defensive minded teams have reignited concerns about this team’s ability to compete for titles down the stretch. The areas of concern range from not having adequate depth in case of injuries along with the lack of having a Plan B for teams that park the bus. With Champions League clashes against Manchester City on the horizon, perhaps Barça need to look into getting some players through transfers or on loan during this winter transfer period.

Barça‘s scoreless draw against Atlético Madrid and their recent 1-1 draw to Levante saw them drop points against teams willing to sit back and relinquish possession. Sadly, all that possession didn’t result in numerous scoring chances. This has been a common trend that the Blaugrana have encountered over the years without much success.

These matches are even more difficult when key players are missing. Barça were without Dani Alves, Iniesta and Neymar against Levante while Messi and Neymar came off the bench in the second half against Atlético. It is tough to fathom how this team can cope with more injuries and then expect the likes of Tello and Sergi Roberto to be considered adequate replacements. They are not and that’s clearly a drop in quality.

These matches also displayed the team’s lack of a Plan B when they face teams content to sit back and absorb the pressure. Barça control possession without creating many scoring chances and the opponents try to catch Barça off guard and score on a counter attack. The fact that Barça have also conceded six goals from corner kicks also indicates that they have another area of weakness that needs to be resolved.

So perhaps the club needs to address both issues and look into making some moves during this winter transfer period. I grew up watching the club with forwards who were aerial threats such as Julio Salinas and Patrick Kluivert so perhaps they should make a move for someone like Miroslav Klose or Christian Benteke who could make Tata Martino’s tinkering with the long balls more effective. Their presence would attract the attention of defenders who could clear up space for other players much like Fernando Llorente did for Spain against Portugal in their World Cup clash. 

Furthermore, the club needs to add a center back to ensure they have adequate defending down the stretch. Mascherano is no center back and with Puyol still not fully fit, or dependable for that matter, the team is left with only Pique and Bartra as their only valid options. If one of them goes down with an injury, then the team is in a world of hurt. The team might also want to look into signing an actual winger to provide crosses seeing as Tello, Pedro and Alexis are not wingers either. Then again, Afellay is back from injury and he would fit in quite nicely under Tata’s style.

I did not expect the club to make a push for Mata but that would have been interesting to see him come in and share time with one of the midfielders over Sergi Roberto. Winter transfer period is not historically a time Barça signs players but perhaps they can catch lightning in a bottle again like they did when they added Edgar Davids during the 2003-2004 season. Ultimately, Barça cannot keep relying on the same old strategy without changing some ingredients along with bringing in some new faces or else they are going to make their second half of the season more interesting than it should be.

Barça need to dip into the transfer market.

Barça’s customary weaknesses reared their ugly heads again following some less than impressive recent performances in the league. Their inability to get the best of their opponents who prefer to sit back and be defensive along with not having a deep enough squad raised some red flags about their chances winning both the league and European crown. Perhaps the solution lies with looking elsewhere for players to provide Tata Martino with a successful Plan B and a deep enough squad to overcome injuries. Barça needs to be proactive and not reactive when it comes to transfer.

Barça’s recent draws against Atlético Madrid and Levante saw them drop points against teams willing to defend while only scoring one goal. With the first leg against Manchester City is less than a month away, these types of performances brought back memories to Barça coming up short in Champions League Semi-Finals against Manchester United, Inter Milan and Chelsea. In those ties, Barça enjoyed a lion’s share of possession but could only generate a few scoring chances which resulted in ever fewer goals.

Watching this team come up short back then and now means the club needs to address this problem.  Part of the problem lies with not having an adequate plan to confront these teams that park the bus. The other problem is also not having adequate squad depth to compensate if they lose players to injuries.  This team struggled to defeat Levante last weekend while missing Dani Alves, Iniesta and Neymar. Those who were asked to fill in failed to adequately replace those missing stars.

Furthermore, just relying on the same style with some tweaks is not enough. Sure, it is great to rely on the long ball at times to catch the opponent off guard, but merely swapping players while using the same system is no adequate backup plan.  Thus, the club’s best option is to pursue players in this transfer window period.

It’s no secret that I have always been a firm believer that this club has lacked a true aerial threat type of player who commanded a physical presence to attract defenders such as Julio Salinas and Patrick Kluivert in the past. Guardiola had his heart in the right place when the club signed Ibrahimovic but the player refused to adapt and was more inclined to score through amazing spin kicks and not by simply heading the ball in.True, Neymar was signed as the X factor to solve these types of problems. However, they can pursue players such as Miroslav Klose to be a weapon off the bench to help in implementing the plan B. He is not cup tied with regards to the Champions League and is at an age where he probably wouldn’t mind being a role player much like Henrik Larsson was.

Moreover, it is clear that the club is lacking adequate depth to compensate players who are injured. With Iniesta out, the club is relying on up and coming Sergi Roberto but he is not at the level to be considered as a sufficient replacement. Thiago’s departure is felt in moments like this where you wish the club handled his situation properly. Afellay has returned from his injury and perhaps can fill in for him but perhaps the club can scout and find someone of caliber, on loan even, to fill in for his absence.

The biggest pressing need though is for the club to sign someone in the hear t of the defense. Puyol still does seem to be fully fit which makes it difficult to rely on him being there down the stretch. That only leaves the club with just Pique and Bartra as the two centerbacks of this club along with Mascherano. If either of them suffers a long term injury, then this club would be handcuffed the rest of the season by relying on a few players to be the centerbacks. Bartra’s injury scare should serve as a warning shot for the club to scout the globe and bring someone in now.

It’s about time the club began to be proactive and not reactive to address the team’s needs. Barça cannot wait till someone goes down to a long term injury to start planning for the future. They need to realize that there are some needs that should be addressed now and not till the summer. Signing players now much like they did with Afellay a few years ago, or Edgar Davids, on loan back, in 2003-2004 season, should be looked into to strengthen this squad for the second half of the season and give this club other means of attack.

Llorente? Why Not?

Not too long ago, rumors that Barça were interested in Fernando Llorente were circulating by the Catalan press because Llorente was not featuring much for Juventus. In the past, this rumor would have been shot down by many but today? Perhaps it is a rumor to give it some thought.

Llorente on FC Barcelona's radar? That was the case not too long ago based on the usual transfer gossip we see in the media. I’m from the old school Culé mentality that believes FC Barcelona should have a forward who has height and the ability to score headers much like Julio Salinas did for Johan Cruyff and Patrick Kluivert did for the numerous Barça managers that he played for and even Henrik Larsson did  for us under Rijkaard. Those were players who used their height to their advantage and also could set up their teammates with scoring chances thanks to their passing.  Simply put, these guys were not just there to use their heads for goals but to also create scoring chances for others.

Unfortunately, we have not seen those types of players signed by the club for a while. Now I know, I know, Barça did sign Ibrahimovic. That is true; however, Ibra was more interested in scoring aerial karate kicks types of goals instead of using his head. He could have been that extra threat that Kluivert excelled in whenever he bothered to show up. Nonetheless, Ibra and his ego resulted in his downfall and speedy exit from the Blaugrana.

I have also heard the usual argument from fellow Cules that our club’s style is not built for those types of players. I disagree. I am a firm believer that you can get any player to adjust to your team as long as they have the right talent and attitude and can also keep their ego in check. I have always wanted the club to sign someone like Miroslav Klose or Fernando Llorente.  Furthermore, this club is playing a different style of football that we are used to seeing so perhaps the Llorente option should be revisited in the future if he is available.

I still remember seeing his performance as a substitute in Spain’s World Cup match against Portugal. The 6 foot 3 forward stepped onto the pitch and definitely changed the game. His presence created problems for the center backs and allowed his teammates to enjoy some breathing room on the pitch , which was non-existent prior to his introduction to the game. He is what Barça could use against teams that park the bus as we saw against Celtic recently.

In all likelihood, this transfer will never happen, not even on loan. But with Tata Martino’s arrival, it definitely is not a farfetched idea to sign someone who has experience playing with these guys on the international level. Unfortunately, this will only continue to torment me like the club’s lack of interest in signing Klose as this decade’s version of Henrik Larsson. But it would be nice if the club put some thought behind it.