Barcelona lose 3-1 and drop the first clasico of the season.
Barcelona dropped points for the third consecutive match after falling 3-1 to Real Madrid in the first meetup between the two sides this season.
All the excitement built up after the club’s first win against Villarreal has all but evaporated with the pressure mounting up for manager Ronald Koeman.
Koeman gambled with his lineup playing three teenagers in Ansu Fati, Pedri and Sergino Dest. His gamble appeared to be spot on after Fati equalized to negate Federico Valverde’s opener. Barcelona were on the front foot in the second half creating a couple of chances to take the lead.
But a controversial penalty in favor of Real Madrid put Zinedine Zidane’s team ahead. Madrid never looked back and Luka Modric scored their third and final goal to put the nail in the coffin.
Plenty is going to come out of this game, good and bad, for Barcelona. The Catalans have increasingly stumbled after starting out the season with two impressive wins. Old habits die hard, however, and new ones appear to be emerging under Koeman.
1. The kids can play
One of the few bright spots for Barcelona coming out of the loss are the performances of their young players. Ansu Fati, normally deployed on the left, started centrally and scored Barcelona’s only goal of the game.
As each game goes by, he’s proving more and more that he belongs and showing that despite his age, he is the real deal.
But he was not alone.
Sergino Dest was not overwhelmed by the occasion and played very well on the right. He snuffed out plenty of the Real Madrid attacks and kept Vinicius at bay. He was not at fault for any of the goals conceced.
Pedri also had a decent game all things considering. His influence was not overly evident but put in a significant effort in tracking back when needed. In many aspects, he was playing the Griezmann role and sacrificing going forward to make sure the team were solid defensively.
One of the things that Koeman promised when he took over the job was he would play someone who was playing well regardless of age. He’s somewhat kept his promise with Riqui Puig and Carles Alena being two young players who have yet to have an opportunity under the Dutchman.
In the end, Koeman’s risk did not pay off as Barcelona lost but with not much else to take out of this game in terms of highlights, Barcelona supporters will take what they can get at the moment.
2. Some players not up to standards
Football is a team game but individual errors can cost a team and it certainly cost Barcelona in this game.
Sergio Busquets is one of the team captains but has increasingly not looked up to the task. He failed to track Federico Valverde in the first Real Madrid goal and was too sloppy with his passes, ending up in turnovers leading to counter attacks.
But it is not a new thing with Busquets. He has not been up to his usual standards for some time now. Koeman’s insistence in playing him is costing Barcelona and so is his stubbornness in freezing out the likes of Puig and Alena.
Philippe Coutinho appears to be Koeman’s project and like Barcelona, has struggled as each game has gone by. The Brazilian was very poor during the second half and missed what could have been the equalizer when his header hit the side netting.
Coutinho looks to be entering a similar malaise like he did the season before he was shipped out to Bayern Munich on loan. The Catalans could have sold him to Arsenal but stayed at the behest of the Dutch manager.
While the season has only started, there are worrying signs that some heavyweights no longer have the quality to at least be starters. Whether or not Koeman will have the character to bench them remains to be seen.
3. Pressure mounts on Koeman
Koeman’s big tactical plan during the last 15 minutes of the game was to chuck out every attacker and hope that one of them would score an equalizer. Not only did that not happen but his team then conceded a third.
He made his substitution too late in the game and then completely destabilized his team both in midfield and defense. For a manager with his track record, that his only bet was something anyone off the street could have come up with is concerning.
What is even more concerning is that it is not the first time that’s happened this season.
Those types of moves speak of a manager who has little idea of what he is doing or what he wants his team to play at. It reeks of desperation but it seems to be Koeman’s one and only option.
The team were playing well up until the penalty. His 4-2-3-1 does not appear to be working and he completely goes away from it when trailing. His complaints about VAR spoke of a man who is already running out of ideas and looking for excuses.
Koeman took charge knowing that he was a lame duck manager with the current board on their way out. He bet on himself that if he did a good job it would be hard for the next president to fire him.
So far, he’s not doing himself any favors. He has a talented squad but does not seem to know how to best utilize them. The team struck out on a couple of players he wanted but that is no excuse.
The shadow of Xavi looms large and the way things are going, both on and off the pitch, unless the team pulls a complete 180 and start clicking, Koeman’s dream of being the Barcelona manager will last only one season.
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