Is Barça on the Right Path?

This season ushered in a wind of change with a new manager who has no ties to Barça’s philosophy or had any ties to the Michels-Cruyff Oranje style football. However, one has to wonder if the club is headed in the right direction in all aspects of the club. Change is always good, only for the betterment of the team.

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Barça has always been recognized for having a vision in how the team should play from the first team down to the youth level. It always made it easier for young players to make the transition from the youth setup to the Barça B team to the first team. This vision launched under Johan Cruyff and Guardiola restored it to some extent when he took over as manager too. However, that vision seems to be lost at the moment.

Barça B have struggled under manager Eusebio and quite frankly, have failed to impress as well. Barça B used to be fun to watch under the helm of Pep Guardiola and Luis Enrique and also won. However, ever since Eusebio was hired to take over Barça B, results and performances have been disappointing. One Barça acquaintance once told me that the most alarming thing about Barça B under Eusebio has been the lack of progress from players under his coaching. You have to really think hard as to when was the last time you saw a player actually do well under him and not regress.  With the likes of Rafinha and Deulofeu out on loan, it’s hard to fathom who else will go on loan next year?

Barça’s recent defeat to Ajax also made me wonder if the B players were better off playing for someone like Frank de Boer over at Ajax than for Eusebio. Eusebio’s style is not exactly one that is faithful to the first team style that we have been accustomed to seeing. However, that Ajax loss also made me wonder how good is it for this club to play Tata Martino’s style of football when the younger players are taught to play a different style of football. So not only do we have the youth playing an odd system under Eusebio, they are going to be exposed to yet another system if they ever get promoted to the first team to play for Tata Martino.

Barça’s vision seemed simple and plausible in the past. Everyone played the same system so they would not have a tough time adjusting when they get promoted. Now, it’s a whirlwind of exposure for the young players. They are taught one style at a very young age, and then are introduced to an uncertain and unpopular style when they make it to Barça B and exposed to yet another different style if Tata Martino is still around with the first team.

Even the basketball team seems a shadow of itself. It once went from a powerhouse in Spain and Europe to just an average side. The team dropped the ball in taking care of the basketball team who are still sponsor-less this season. There is a reason why this club has been successful for the past decade. They had a vision which applied to all levels at the club. However, that vision seems to be lost in the midst of Camp Nou renovations talk, sponsorship deals talk, bad press against the president and slow movement in resigning players.  It seems this club is more interested in the Bottom Line than it is with the direction of the team.

If Barça want to remain one of the powerhouses in Europe, let alone the world, then they need to go back to the basics. In order to do that, they need to go back to having a clear philosophy and vision of how Barça should be playing. You can change managers and players, but you should never change the vision and philosophy of what is Barça.

 

No Club For Old Men?

Barça suffer two consecutive defeats in a week and suddenly Barça are in a crisis. It’s too soon for me to scream out the sky is falling but there have been signs of fan displeasure regarding Barça’s style of play. Tata Martino has made some changes but perhaps the one change he should consider is initiating a youth movement. In other words, time to give less minutes to Puyol and Xavi.

Sport mentioned yesterday that Puyol was still not 100% fitfor their Copa match even after he hadknee drained a few days ago. Meanwhile, Barça’s new system has made Xavi a shadow of his former self. Xavi’s performance and assists have decreased the past few seasons and it’s no coincidence that is when his Achilles problems began to plague him. Clearly these guys are not the same players from a few years ago. 

Sandro Rosell’s presidency has ushered in a new era for FC Barcelona where it could be deemed as a ruthless business approach. Nevertheless, their off the pitch ruthlessness has not correlated with their on the pitch structure of the football club. They seem reluctant to get away from the past. Perfect example, last season’s epic performance against Milan featured the same lineup that won the Champions League Final at Wembley with the minor exception of Alba starting in place of Eric Abidal.

Is it time for Barça to start focusing on the younger players and put the likes of Xavi and Puyol on the bench on a permanent basis. Puyol is 35 and his body can be the Catalan version of the image of the classic game “Operation” while Xavi is 33 and seems more interested in passing the ball sideways nowadays. As much as I love those legends, perhaps Barça needs to look to the future and not be stuck in the past. 

Barça already lost one phenom, Thiago, because someone like Xavi played in 60 games last season while the young player could hardly feature. Barça has a rough in the diamond in Marc Bartra who has performed well when called upon which merited him a call up to the Spanish national team. However, he has to play second fiddle to Puyol and Mascherano, who happens to be 29. Meanwhile, his fellow colleague, Montoya, is also finding it a tough go to get minutes while he plays second fiddle to Dani Alves and Adriano. Dani Alves is 30 and Adriano is 29.

Players with determination and ambition also want minutes. So Barça have to ask themselves, can they afford to lose more younger players and lose a piece of their future? Or will they still clutch to the past by playing players who might not be up to the task anymore? Now, unlike Rosell, I’m not a heartless guy. I would love to have both players stick around till they retire when they hit 40, albeit with different roles. Perhaps Puyol can start the occasional game here and there, at center back only, whereas Xavi should also start the occasional odd game but more importantly, I can see how useful he would be in games where Barça would require his presence to protect a lead by allowing them to stay in control in the final 15-20 minutes of a match.

Other teams are getting younger and Barça need to realize that it’s just not the style of play that they have been far too deeply reliant on, but it’s their reliance on the old guard as well. Barça have to move with the times and keep the squad young and fresh and not lose their young players to other teams. It’s not an easy decision but Barça need to start looking ahead or else they might find themselves stuck in the past.

Honeymoon over for Tata Martino.

Tata Martino endured his worst week as Barça manager following disappointing away defeats to Ajax Amsterdam and Athletic Bilbao. His honeymoon period is over and Tata will now brace himself for the firestorm of criticism that awaits him from the Barcelona based media as questions will linger about the team’s style.

This was Barça’s worst week ever in quite a while. Sure, we’re accustomed to seeing the Blaugrana lose here and there over the years, but the performances against Ajax and Athletic were ones you hope you never see Barça display again. Tata Martino had enjoyed a great start to his coaching career with the Blaugrana but that’s about to change with the media ready to pounce on him.

The media have not been too impressed with Tata this season mainly because of his preference for the team to be more direct. The team was winning, so the criticism seemed petty from a bunch of spoiled fans who are members of the media. However, those knives are being sharpened following these two defeats and Tata will have to be ready to face the music.

I have always been a firm believer that Barça must always adapt and not just fall into the same routine when it comes to their style of football. Tata’s arrival seemed to do just that with their smart cautious performance in El Clásico as the perfect example. His coaching allowed Barça to get the victory at his own style. However, these most recent losses did raise some issues.

Style of play will be one hot issue with everyone this week. The team’s sudden transformation from “Tika-Taka” to “Long Ball” is not winning over the fans and one has to worry if it is also not winning over the players. Xavi already voiced his concerns with Tata following Barça’s victory over Rayo where they had less possession than their opponents. What we saw against Athletic was a rather pathetic display by a team that can do better without resorting to chasing down long balls.

Another hot issue will be the re-occurring lack of no “Plan B” argument when the going gets tough. In both matches, Barça struggled to break down their opponents with their lone goal coming from a penalty. It seemed as if we were back to reliving the final days of Tito Vilanova where substitutions should have been made earlier along with the players looking lost and lethargic. Tata’s substitutions did not pan out and Barça seemed to resemble a team in search of an identity. Overall, we expected these problems to be sorted by now, not brought back to our attention.

Furthermore, one has to wonder if the club has the right personnel or need to sign more players in the upcoming winter transfer period. Sure, the club was missing a few key players but perhaps the depth is not there. If Tata’s style is not suited for the players, then perhaps they should sign some players in the upcoming transfer window that suit this style. Of course, he can always revert to the Barça style and make slight tweaks here and there. A complete transformation is not what many had in mind when Tata was hired to coach this squad and perhaps he should just focus on keeping the same style, with minor adjustments like he did in El Clásico along with squad rotations.

Fortunately for Tata, the upcoming schedule will be friendly with an upcoming Copa del Rey match against Cartagena on Friday and then the final Champions League group stage match against Celtic at the Camp Nou the follow week. Hopefully he can give some players some rest to recharge and minutes for others in need to gain some form and confidence. There’s still a lot of football left to be played and it’s very premature to panic. However, with Atlético and Real Madrid also in the hunt for the league title, Tata needs to settle on a system that works best for his team.

 

The Criticism of Tata Martino is Premature.

FC Barcelona’s manager Tata Martino is off to a great start after 20 matches in charge. His era kicked off by capturing the Supercopa and Barça are currently league leaders while enjoying being group leaders in the UEFA Champions League. Yet, there exists a minority of disenfranchised Barça fans who are not happy with the work done by Tata. Even though his system is different, it is still premature to criticize the manager.

There’s no need to go over the accomplishments of Pep Guardiola during his time as Barça’s manager. There’s also no need to re-examine Johan Cruyff’s ‘Dream Team’ era either. Both were memorable and high successful. Thus, to say Tata Martino had some gigantic shoes to fill was an understatement. Fortunately, he has been wise enough to just merely tinker with the system and not completely overhaul it.

Nevertheless, fans and even members of the Catalan media have been voicing their displeasure over the current style of football being represented by Barça. I am a firm believer that you can never please everyone in life since no matter how good you’re doing; someone will always be around the corner to criticize. Fortunately, Tata has proven that he is thick skinned in handling this problem from the get go.

The man is in charge and until he leaves or is fired, he is going to be the guy we need to throw our support behind him. I have criticized him in the past for ignoring the younger player such as Bartra and Montoya but I refuse to criticize him for the team’s performance. He has come in and has given this team what was exactly needed; a minor tinkering.

My mother used to tell me when I was younger that “repetition teaches the donkey.” In other words, if you keep repeating something, you will figure it out. Obviously Barça excelled under Pep after a couple of early mishaps and ruled the world along with capturing the admiration of many. However, the same can be said about Barça’s opponents finally figuring out how to slow them down over the past few years. What Tata brings is a change in the system to finally catch the opponents off guard.

 The most recent Clásico presented us with a more caution but more clever Barça side. The end result was a 2-1 victory and they are currently unbeaten league leaders. Nostalgia is great but you cannot expect to obtain the same results when you keep repeating the style after so many years. You either change with the times or you find yourself playing catchup. He knows that and admitted that it’s not enough to just win when it comes to Barça but he has done a superb job thus far.

Unfortunately, Barça’s own friendly media can be very unfriendly towards its manager; just ask Louis van Gaal.  Let’s wait till the season is close to an end before we start sharpening the pitch forks and light the torches, shall we. Thus, it is premature to criticize Tata Martino when the team is doing well and to some extent playing well with respect to the injuries and congested fixtures this squad has faced.  So far, the season is going well and other players have stepped it up along with younger players finally getting some minutes. We still have a long ways to go and the least we can do is back the mister while he does what was expected of him to do in the first place; win.

Messi’s Health Must Be Barça’s Priority.

Monday’s news that Messi’s torn hamstring injury will cause him to be out of action between six to eight weeks was disappointing news for us Cules. However, this news was not a surprise either. Messi and Barça have ignored the warning signs of not giving Messi some rest and following this latest setback, it’s time that they ensured Messi is well rested and make it a priority to watch over Messi’s health and protect him from wear and tear and from himself.

Over the years, Messi has dazzled us with wonderful goals and performances in countless matches. Yet, while watching with all those goals, I couldn’t help but think that sooner or later, Messi’s dedication to play in every match would come back to haunt him. Back in December, I mentioned my concerns about Messi playing in so many games to satisfy his obsession in breaking goal-scoring records. Although it was a great achievement, Messi was putting his body at risk by not taking a proper breather here and there.

Well, fast forward a few months later and we saw a tired and hurt Messi try to suck it up and help his team when he was not 100% healthy and ultimately paid the price. This season hasn’t been any better for the legendary player who has already suffered prior three other injuries this season.  It did not help that instead of taking the summer off to recover, Messi opted to play in travel and play numerous friendlies.

Messi cannot continue playing at this pace without suffering any injuries along the way. Both Messi and Barça must understand that Messi is not getting any younger and has played in an enormous amount of matches. Watching Messi play on his tired legs is like watching a car driving on tires with low air pressure where the end result is the same; a crash. Messi now has 6-8 weeks to recover and hopefully he does not rush back nor will the club try to rush him back this time. The club needs to make sure Juanjo Brau is back to watching Messi as he did in the past and cut down on his minutes via rotations.

 

No love for El Cholo and Tito?

On October 29, 2013, FIFA released the names of the candidates for the FIFA World Coach of the Year. Upon further review however, there was a head scratcher or two when the names were released. Where was the love for Diego Simeone and Tito Vilanova? Surely they deserved to be on the shortlist over some of their counterparts.

Per FIFA’s official website, the candidates for World Coach of the Year award were Carlo Ancelotti, Rafael Benítez, Antonio Conte, Vicente Del Bosque, Sir Alex Ferguson, Jupp Heynckes, Jürgen Klopp, José Mourinho, Luiz Felipe Scolari, and Arsène Wenger. I was a bit disappointed not to see Atletico Madrid’s Diego Simeone or Barça’s former manager, Tito Vilanova on the list ahead of some of these other names on the list.

Tito Vilanova managed Barca to the Spanish league title by capturing 100 points and finished 15 points clear of Real Madrid who were managed by none other than José Mourinho. Both managers got their teams to the semi-finals of the UEFA Champions League before being eliminated by German clubs. Yet Mourinho ended up on the shortlist while Tito did not. Mourinho ended up leaving Real Madrid after failing to win a major trophy while Tito had to step down for health reasons. Yet Mourinho ended up on the shortlist while Tito did not.  For the sake of playing Devil’s Advocate, I’ll give Mourinho his due that his side did not lose to FC Barcelona in the league and Copa del Rey. However, was his season better than Vilanova’s?

Furthermore, how can someone like Diego Simeone be ignored from this list? He has completely turned Atlético Madrid around and made them from laughing stock “Pathetico” to a respected side that are currently second in the league and are off to an excellent start in the Champions League where they have won their first four group stage matches. Simeone continues to build from his side’s third place finish from last season which also saw them defeat Mourinho’s Real Madrid in Copa del Rey final. Since then, they have defeated Real Madrid in their first league encounter, with Ancelotti under the helm, and battled Barça to two draws in the Supercopa that saw them lose out the trophy on away goals rule.

Yet, Mourinho once again is on the shortlist while El Cholo is not. It is very disappointing and appalling that both Simeone and Vilanova did not make the shortlist. These men had a great season and won more than Mourinho. Better yet, can someone explain to me how Wenger made it to this list because I can’t recall what Arsenal won last season.

Will He Stay Or Will He Go? Casillas’s Predicament.

Casillas’s future with Madrid seems to be in doubt. With the World Cup just 7 months away, Casillas is supposedly contemplating leaving his beloved club in order. This past weekend saw Casillas observe El Clásico from the bench as his counterpart Victor Valdés put in another strong performance to perhaps gain the upper hand for the goal keeper position in Spain’s starting eleven.

Alexis’s splendid goal against Diego Lopez this past weekend had Cules celebrating with awe while at the same time, neutrals and perhaps Madridistas were wondering if Alexis would have scored that goal if Casillas was in goal. Nevertheless, that’s in the past now and the future lies ahead. However, will Casillas be part of Madrid’s future or will he pursue an exit from the only club he has ever played for in order to get more playing minutes?

As a Culé, I have no problem admitting that Casillas is one of the few players of the arch enemy that I admired. Sure, he had that momentary lapse where he drank from Mourinho’s own special blend of Kool-Aid, but he has always been a classy individual for the most part. That’s why I am puzzled by the way the club has been treating their captain and icon. If they are not pleased in his role with the fall out of Mourinho, then making his life miserable is only harming their club and their country.

Mundo Deportivo recently posted a story that some Barça players approached Casillas in the Camp Nou tunnel prior to kickoff and told him to join the Blaugrana. Obviously this was done in a lighthearted manner however it’s not that far-fetched that they perhaps some were also delivering a subtle recruiting pitch to the distraught keeper. His familiarity with the players throughout the years on international duty would make him the perfect choice to replace Valdés.

 Nevertheless, Casillas will never join FC Barcelona. I cannot see him pulling the treacherous act of switching sides like Luis Enrique and Figo did. Luis Enrique came through the Gijon academy while Figo only was loyal to himself and never had a problem signing deals with other clubs. Casillas though is a Madridista, through and through. He came through the Castilla ranks since he was a child and has dedicated over 20 years with his club. 

Unfortunately, those years of service seem not to mean much for the Real Madrid hierarchy who are satisfied by letting their icon appear sporadically in UEFA Champions League matches and upcoming Copa del Rey matches. Even his fellow Spanish teammate and another counterpart, Pepe Reina believes Casillas is getting a raw deal, if you believe the lip readers. Casillas though is handling this like a gentleman. Although his club has wronged him, the fans still love him and I believe Casillas cares too much to break their hearts and join the Blaugrana.

As much as it seems that it would be a good fit, it will never happen. Casillas needs to leave Madrid, even on loan if possible, to improve his chances of remaining Spain’s number one goalkeeper. I don’t see it happening if he plays second fiddle to Diego Lopez in the Spanish league while starting in limited number of matches in other competitions. Del Bosque will have a difficult decision to make when it comes to selecting his starting goalkeeper when Spain attempts to defend their World Cup trophy. Casillas nonetheless has to think about his short-term and long-term future with his club. Neither of which see him wearing Blaugrana colors.