FC Barcelona is still in free fall and the few green shoots that were seen with the arrival of Xavi are not having an effect, at least in the form of results. The arrival of the Spanish coach was going to mean a return to the Barça style, to cruyffismo, to tiki-taka, and with time it will end up arriving. But a month later, Xavi’s Barça still resembles Koeman’s.
Koeman already surprised in more than one match leaving with three centrals, something for which he was highly criticized. And now with Xavi we have also seen it, and the fact is that with the number of injuries that the team has, the options to make the eleven are limited.
That change of scheme with three centrals did not manage to stop the bleeding of Barça behind neither when Koeman did nor now with Xavi. The team continues to make the same mistakes, it has lack of co-entries and to that we must add the individual mistakes
Xavi was not going to improve the aim of his forwards, those who are healthy, and it has been. Barcelona continues to have problems facing the rival goal, in 22 games it has scored 27 goals, that is, it goes to 1.2 goals per game.
We very much believed that after Koeman’s departure one of the great beneficiaries would be Riqui Puig, because with the Dutchman he lived in ostracism. But the arrival of Xavi has not improved his situation much and although he has given him minutes he hardly has him.
From his first season Ronald Koeman opted to give opportunities to youth players such as Araujo, Nico or Gavi, who are already two permanent players. Xavi not only continues to count on the players that Koeman brought out but has also given him the opportunity to debut others such as Ilias Akhomach or Jutglà.
Same rival, Bayern Munich, same result, 3-0 and same message but with different words. With Koeman he had installed a climate of negativism that was overshadowed by the hope that Xavi’s signing entailed. In his first statements as a Barça coach, all were positive messages towards the team and the fans, but the blow of the elimination in the Champions League has returned Barça and Xavi to that harsh reality they are experiencing.
Yes, they tied Barça in Pamplona as it happened in Vigo against Celta, but except for the last minutes at El Sadar, the attitude was different. There are players (young people) who are seen with a march more and with more intensity than with Koeman. It is almost the only good thing that can be rescued from this team.
Xavi has not been shy when it comes to pointing out his players. Eric García’s error against Villarreal condemned him to the bench when he had been a permanent fixture for Koeman, and after the defeat in Munich Sergiño Dest was the victim.
Samule Umtiti and Philippe Coutinho are two of the players that Barça wants to get rid of as soon as possible. And while with Koeman he spent more time in the stands than in the field, in fact Umtiti did not debut until the arrival of Xavi, the Spaniard is giving them minutes to put them on the showcase.
It was Xavi’s great novelty as soon as he landed at Can Barça. The coach imposed a series of rules such as arriving two hours before training or having lunch together at the Sports City. A discipline that Barça did not have before and that in the long run will begin to bear fruit.
Koeman’s idea of the game was quite diffuse, in fact you saw players on the field of play who did not know what to do if to go to pressure or withdraw and in the end they stayed halfway, or in other games they all ended up locked in the game. area. With Xavi the idea is very clear: two open ends, pressure and possession. Another thing is that with the players you have and those who are injured you can put it into practice. But at least we already know what game or what Xavi’s Barça is going to play.
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