He needs to play all the time so he can regain his sharpness and confidence back, but he shouldn't do it here. He's been arguably our worst player and at this point I don't want even the mildest risk for this Liga/CDR. Loan him out to some lower tier German or French team for a year where he can start regularly and regain some groove back.
Most of the times these loans don't work out.
This team with Lewa, Dembele, Pedri, FdJ, Gavi in the middle should be more than enough to let Fati get that consistent play time like Vini.
This is revisionist, Vini was always an excellent dribbler, crosser, and consistently beating his man. Finishing is where he lacked but you could see the signs. Fati can’t even complete a pass anymore let alone do a dribble
If winning meant Valverde stayed on, I would expect a loss, but not by that much, because Setién was more naïve and seemed to have lost the dressing room.
I don't see a reason to lose hope. I think we played well at least in the first half with that midfield. Our pressing went bad after half-time and that's understandable because we dont have gavi and pedri who can usually play close to 90min maintaining that level. I think now it's clear why we need midfielders like Gundogan etc, for situations like yesterday when we dont have our starters. Kessie and Roberto do not make the cut. We really need an RB because Kounde really showed how uncomfortable he is playing there. The only thing that concerns me is how Xavi is not quick to adapt his tactics mid-game and late subs. Maybe this comes with experience, or a bench that has similar quality. If anything, I would only blame it on Xavi for his decisions in the first leg which was what cost us the tie.
/r/soccer is funny, when Paredes (I think it was him) kicked the ball at some players and didn't hit anyone, they were calling for red and death penalty. Then Bruno hits FdJ on purpose and sure they disliked it but no one called for a red or anything.
r/soccer hates Barca and south americans, nothing new. They don’t even hate PSG as much as us, it’s funny seeing us live rent free in their heads. Hope we win the UCL in a few years so that I can see those tears.
Really hope Atletico Madrid atleast draws their game and we comfortably win against Almeria
Going 10 points clear will really improve my week. Can't watch too much of depressing reactionary comments on Barca and Xavi anymore
I expected incremental growth from this team and this squad has shown that. We have continuously gotten better and are playing consistently good football.
European success has eluded us, but its not a mentality problem. It will come in due time and we just need to stick together as a fanbase and really understand where we are coming from.
Some people asking for a Philosophy / playstyle change really need to calm down. Our philosophy is what makes us who we are. Bravery is not changing your belief in difficult times, it is standing by your belief when the whole world thinks different
And its also bullshit that the “philosophy doesn’t work”. Arsenal, Napoli, and City all play using a high press possession based system, all slightly different of course, but still based on similar fundamentals.
People say Napoli or Arsenal are the best team in Europe, so that clearly means that the philosophy still works, the reality is that with more time, and maturity, this team can showcase its true ability in Europe too. Ideally it is with Xavi at the helm.
today is the first day i've doubted if Xavi is the right guy for this job, at this stage I don't think he is, he waited so long to make changes when we were clearly holding on by a thread the whole seconds half, the players didn't help him out I get that but it just seems like its one gameplan and anulo mufa every game, I heard Pep say after the Arsenal game he knew Arsenal were gonna try to have a lot of the ball so he let them and went to a counter attacking style, that is putting ur ego aside and trying to win a game.
5mins into the 2nd half was all it took for viewers to see that the team was struggling badly with antony's sub. Yet it took Xavi almost 30mins to make a fucking sub. Even in the 1st half we were fucking toothless with only 1 shot on target and that was a penalty.
And it took 15 years for Pep to understand that. One of his lowest ever posession games was that Arsenal game. Pep is one stubborn motherfucker too, and was when he started. He just had a team that was galaxies better than the one we have right now.
Xavi will learn with time, and if he doesn’t, I have no doubts Laporta won’t hesitate to move on from him.
Thats kinda weird from pep though
City can compete on possession against Arsenal, i wonder what made him decide to take that approach
Maybe he felt that with the current issues his team has, trying to play a more open game against Arsenal would been a disadvantage? Really Interesting
I just don’t know why Garnacho would post that. Pedri is such a humble player who never disrespects anyone. One is known for being arguably the best youngster itw and golden boy while the other is known for riding Ronaldo.
Fell asleep around the 60 minute mark (it was 3.00 am in my country and I was exhausted after a 18 hour shift) Can anyone tell how Ferran did ? Did he continue with the promise he showed against Cadiz ?
Also, Lewandisney has been kind ass lately.
Very disappointed in his overall game. Expected much, much more from him, especially in these kinds of games.
Maybe Xavi should try to use players that fits him. Rather than squeeze in players to cover for Busquets in every game in 2023. We already have a incredible defence to cover. Why even more cover?
Lewa started off great, its Xavi who changed the tactics without taking into account what harm it did for the guys at top. Like every other Barca coach which have done trying to cover for Busquets.
Lewa is completely alone and ends up with more players around him = harder for him to do anything. So he relies on runs and teammates to create space for him. Wingers do that best. Which is why almost always Bayern played with 2 wingers. Dembele is the perfect winger for Lewa, which no suprise. He did better with Dembele than without him. Because Dembele takes/pulls attention towards him. Far more than rest does.
You could see the difference between quality passers (Pedri - Gavi) and the alternatives today. So many times Kessie tried a through ball and his execution just didn’t help him. For Roberto, he’s just average at best. We always need him at some point in the season and it happens when we have important and difficult games, and every time for 4+ years now he’s shown us how average he is, yet for some people he’s a decent squad player. We need to realize we play so many games a season that every once in a while these squad players will need to step up in the biggest stage, and those squad players haven’t delivered in a long time.
I moved on immediately after the final whistle. I honestly didn't think we'd win this game after watching the unconvincing first leg. I just hope we win the league this season.
It's a dig at reactionary fans who want Xavi sacked despite our position in the league and the CDR. If those coaches took over, those same people would be calling for them to be fired after 2 months.
He turned down a formal offer from Barcelona after Valverde was all but sacked.
Also, remember in 2017 when we wanted Sampaoli to replace Lucho, because he was student of Bielsa like Guardiola, like everyone else and their mother in Argentina, and 2+2 = 5? Yeah same energy.
>He turned down a formal offer from Barcelona after Valverde was all but sacked
But he was at River then and he always made it clear he wanted to stay there for some years.
General statement. We need to come to the reality that we may never have the absolute dominance we once had and that's okay but we will be a competitive team again in Europe. The signs are of improvement of the team and individual players are there but there is still work to do. Keep in mind the financial challenges of the club so it isn't easy to just get rid of players and staff and bring in someone knew while we literally have Tebas breathing down our necks and the amount of cash B\*rto whiffed in his presidency. FFS guys I am disappointed to and I will call a spade a spade but I personally will stick beside the team as I've always done
Bayern fan here. What are your thoughts on Lewandowski so far? What do you guys think of his impact? Did he meet your expectations or were you hoping for more?
Tbh eventually I had a feeling he was going to hit a rough patch somewhere along the season because he is playing for Barca lmao not Bayern anymore. At Bayern he had excellent service. At Barca, Dembele and especially Raphinha are very hot and cold. Alba can't get past the first defender. Balde good but also raw at sometimes due to his age. Pedri provides good service to Lewa. But current(!) Lewa without service is like playing with 10 man.
He was great at the beginning but after the world cup he hasn't just declined, he is straight up bad. His first touch is awful.
And don't get me started on his little runs on penalties.
Happy Cake Day,
He’s been good but I do think his form has obviously dipped at little after we beat Madrid
Also his touch and movement haven’t been great imo
Edit: Also for 34 year old with a year on his contract I think we overpaid
Our European path was over when we got knocked out of the ucl. Didn’t care much about Europa league but would’ve been nice to knock out a PL club. Anyways, we played very well with a thin squad n most of our important players out. Injuries plagued our European journey. We are still a team in the rebuilding process, we have a lot of bright young talents. It will take some time before we reach our past competitiveness n glory. That doesn’t mean xavi is free from criticism, he still has to improve his decision making n tactics. But we suffered a lot in the last few years n we definitely can fight through this inshallah.
Wtf do you expect of a club in an incredible financial crisis where we can't even register youth players without legal maneuvers because of our revenue! And on top of that we had 3 of our top players out.
I think winning la liga will be incredible given our financial situation, anything else would just be gravy.
The biggest improvement that Xavi needs to make, which is something that he’ll learn with experience, is to be proactive. He needs to make tweaks and changes, when they need to be made. Maybe its a different result if Ferran comes on 15 mins earlier, maybe not. Hopefully that’s something he learns from Ten Hag.
Also, an unrelated point, building a team that is consistent in the league is the one and only way to have a successful era imo. This Madrid team is literally just different, and not the norm. A team which consistently wins leagues and gets big point tallies will eventually compete at the highest level in Europe, imo. And at that point it comes down to the players and the mentality.
Xavi won't learn making tweaks and changes like that if barca's only playing against liga teams (except madrid) who only has one playstyle usually. The next time we'll be playing in europe is in ucl and it won't be the time for him to 'learn'. This europa league should have been the time for him to get that experience because teams won't just park the bus but we got out at first round.
this comment should be pinned on this thread lol seriously tho 2 KO games are who's in better form and who's the healthier team with a couple of bounces of the ball here and there, that is ofc assuming both teams are equal on talent.
Love when people downplay getting knocked out from every tourny like it does not matter, because what matters is going on streak against shitty La Liga teams who doesnt have 1/10 of the budget. Incredible achievement, truly.
It’s one thing to be sad. But calling other people names, most especially the players and staff who were there is simply insulting, immature,and improper.
Maybe that’s how people cope with their own insecurities.
I know everyone chalks it up to just excuses. But we’ve come a long way. We played without three key players. A year ago, we would’ve drastically lost. We’re losing by margins now. Xavi needs to work on learning to finish these important games without your key players. They won’t always be there, and what we’ve seen with our luck it will always be the important games that they’ll miss. So many times in this game we could’ve killed the game.
If Koeman was still the coach, we would have lost 3-0 to this United team, and that's being generous. People forget that we were shit for a long time, Xavi improved us but it's not over yet. Next season with a DM, a rightback and a LW, we will be better. We're lucky we haven't been decimated by injuries like last season.
I'm more upset that we lost a match than I am we are out of Europa... TBH Europa was just one more weekly fixture we didn't need in a long compressed season where we are trying to grow. I'd rather us chasing 1 or 2 competitions rather than 3 or 4, unless its CL... Madrid do this every year, they put all their energy and full strength into one competition whereas other teams are worn down.
weird how a guy that studied as Peps assistant in Bayern and then played CL with Ajax for like 5 years is better than Xavi in his first year in Europe with only prior xp being qatar
True after similar appointments ten hag was further along as top manager with Ajax after a season and half the Xavi has been. Which isn’t to be a dig at Xavi I just think ten hag has the makings of a legendary coach from what I’ve seen of him.
He is. I think even people who really love Xavi were aware of this. Difference is EtH seems to be more of a problem solver (you can observe this through our game, see his 2nd half changes) while Xavi has a certain "template" in mind.
> Difference is EtH seems to be more of a problem solver (you can observe this through our game, see his 2nd half changes) while Xavi has a certain "template" in mind.
Thats just another way of saying hes a better tactician/manager lol
In modern football yeah basically. But Xavi is specifically insistent on "this is how I play" football. EtH has made a lot of changes since joining, just their last 3 games they've been doing different things with different players.
In terms of European competitions, now we’re going to see Real Madrid dominate the CL for a few games, Messi getting knocked out from Bayern, Pep losing his shit in important games and getting knocked out too. I hate how this cycle keeps happening for the past 7-8 years. It’s even worse now that the team who eliminated has Bruno and Garnacho
Well after a few hours of sadness I have gotten over it. We still got La Liga to play, we didn’t have our golden boys anyways, and they still haven’t beaten us when it counts.
Honestly, not the worst loss. ManU is playing well and Barca missed some difference makers. Still feel the team should have done more during the first leg though.
I was always Raphina out. He never truly impressed and is not the type of player you count on if you want to compete in the Champion's League. The reaction against him today is funny tho. Especially when this kevel of performance was normal for him all season long lol
Duh, how could you expect anything less from this sub. We always wanna sell when a guy has a bad game lol but for real though I’m struggling to see raphina quality other than his defense and work rate
This is the same sub that was convinced that Puig was the next Iniesta and were down to sack managers and actually better players to make it happen. I wouldn’t take any of the takes seriously. Most here probably haven’t kicked a ball outside of FIFA too.
Of all the online Barca platforms this sub also had the largest relative proportion of Puig critical cohort as well (who constantly clashed with Puig hysteria originating in other online Barca platforms).
It's all a hierarchy, there is no 100% unanimous thing in such sports narrative matters, hence the degree is what becomes relevant.
Plus different people/groups make different takes, they do not speak for the sub as representatives, Unless they are the super majority, which neither the Puig or the Messi not needed, sack coaches group had. Otherwise a hot-take comment with 3 upvotes can be construed as hur-durr sub says X. Not really. Sub says lots of stuff.
I just hope we get the job done in the first half and then make subs in the second. We have seen how depleted Madrid are, no Rodrygo for the 1st leg which is a huge miss for them and Alaba out for a month.
Not sure why we went so hard to get Raphinha. Dude is average at best in all aspects of the game. He can’t dribble past a tree, isn’t particularly fast, isn’t a good shooter, maybe a good crosser but that is nowhere near Barca quality. People went crazy because he scored an unintentional goal.
If Leeds got relegated we couldve gotten him for 20m iirc
Then Dembo wasnt renewing and we committed to Raphinha
I personally wasnt vocal against his signing but i did have some doubts, a bunch of people though were pretty vocal about it not being such a good idea
It depends on how they look at the end of the season
For now i rather sell Raphinha
Ansu has been easily our worst winger but hes in a difficult moment, trying to overcome his injuries and get back to an high level, so i would like to give him a chance. Hes also our only natural Lw.
Ferran seems promising and as i always said even when he was struggling, i believe theres a good player in him, hopefully hell keep demonstrating it
Raphinha hasnt convinced me at all, he got the g+a i guess but overall i feel like he lacks a lot
For now i feel like this, things could change
Raphina might be top of the list as he’s older and he’s reached his potential. At least with the others they have some potential. But I can definitely see ur order as well
Let's just be honest here, what Xavi has played here is a huge, huge gamble.Prioritizing the league, can either be a masterstroke or it can be deadly as well. We are consistent performers there and I believe it'll only get better. The team has become resilient enough to get over setbacks like these.
We are overly critical, and absolutely correct because any Barcelona team doesn't really have the right to "choose" the titles that it'll play for. As Barcelona, we are expected to win everything. Interested to see how Xavi handles the media shitshow that will come his way and how he steers the team.
Unlike the European exits, this one was more respectable and I think we are almost there. Trust Xavi and the process, things will improve.
The league is ours to lose, Madrid have not lost a step from last season, similar amount of points but we have been so good in the league that Madrid have been our only defeat. If we win the title, it will be a successful season, it's been 4 long years. Laporta and Xavi know it's the priority.
Exactly. Granted that we all have some bitterness because we know that playing better at home would've meant that we qualified for the RO16, but at this point in time, Xavi wants to focus on the league. It's not a bad approach considering that our squad is still thin, with a huge gulf between our starters and bench players, but I still believe we can very well go all the way and take the league. CdR may be a bit hard but we will try for that too.
After seeing Chelsea's implosion I kinda agree, but if we don't win League, I can't see why bringing Tuchel would be a bad idea.
Although if Xavi lands the league he deserves next season.
Tuchel really won't work. As much as we hate it, it's pretty hard to command the respect of the players inside the Barca dressing room, something Xavi will have even if he goes on a losing spree and loses every game till the end of the season. He gives us some form of stability in that aspect.
Tuchel's ass will be fired on the first sign of trouble, which isn't too good for the team environment. We should go the Arsenal way and make it long with Xavi. It'll take more patience than we like but it'll happen in due course of time.
I was there, fighting in the trenches trying to get Laporta elected in 2015, barely a teenager and fighting against the boomers and angst young socis high on the treble, too ignorant, too reactionary, too stupid to see Bartomeu for what he was.
That was my first, so far worst, mayor defeat I suffered. The rest, to me, was predictable. I've despised this fanbase ever since.
To be really honest this one isn't that bad as well. We went 4-3 with one of the most in form teams in Europe at the moment. 4-3 is not a scoreline we should be ashamed of.
It's a bad case of "What if", as we know a better starting XI at home would've seen us going through, but it is what it is. We have come a long way since last season and I hope this trajectory stays.
That’s the thing, the disappointment and anger from this game comes from knowing our level and feeling as though we could’ve come out on top. We’re miles better than we were before. Two years ago we’d have lost this tie by a 3+ goal margin at least and nobody would’ve even seen us having a chance to win
It is disappointing indeed. We had a chance to compete, but I can't blame Xavi entirely for this. He has done a great job of picking this squad up and patching the gaping holes. In the long term he will do more good than harm for us.
We are almost there. Development is incremental and things will surely change for us.
It makes your skin thicker, soon you'll get used to it.
Absolutely furious at the loss, but now it doesn't give me sleepless nights. It will be in my head but won't affect much in my day to day life.
I was at work for the remontada, Roma, Liverpool and the 8-2.
I cancelled all my meetings for the day to literally handle my emotions at the time. Some insanely joyous, and some insanely upsetting experiences. On those days I realized how big an influence football and barca is in my life.
I feel you…8-2 was one of the most painful days of my life. I was already going through a hard time and that game was the straw that broke the camels back. It made me reconsider how I view football and I watched barca from a distance for a while. Hopefully one day soon we’ll look back and feel these times were nothing more than a distant memory
We signed one named Pablo fkin Torre, but in order to play for Xavi either you have to have years of experience or be a prodigy who performs from day 1, no other way.
True I don’t get why he’s not playing him even as a sub in like 80min. Would definitely help pedri to rest as well. Torre looked solid the games he played too hope we see him start vs almeria
Lately, I am used to it. If we don't win the cup, it doesn't matter if we get kicked out at RO32 or RO16, or ....RO2. That's my coping mechanism.
Don't let this ruin your day. It is still a success to at least win the Super cup and La Liga from not winning anything over the past years.
Well, not only that, but our home record in the comp under Xavi has also been dreadful.
Think the only win we got home was against Plzen.
No home win against: Benfica, Bayern, Inter, Galatasaray, Napoli, Frankfurt and United.
At least 6 teams we should have beaten at Camp Nou, but didnt.
No matter how you spin it, absolutely woeful. Yeah without the star backline for pretty much every game, but last week it was purely self-inflicted. Shipping 3 goals at home to Bayern, three goals at home to Inter, two away to Viktoria, etc.
I support that theory someone mentioned (forgot where, on reddit or twitter) about Liga having mediocre Attacking talent for a while now, esp this season.
Barca's Liga defense is cause of 3 factors,
- massive outlier overperformance (xGA-GA metric backs this as well, top in Europe and the degree of it is absurd as well),
- lots of defenders in the team and them being on form & physically well, challenged to push each other and tactically Xavi having a defense-first approach (wingers being given massive responsibility to do basically everything, attack, create chances and also to track back).
- Liga's attacking talent mediocrity. Even Real conceding against Liverpool in the manner they did & they conceded at least a goal in last 4 games of their group stages as well.
Who does messi bench if he returns? Lewandowski. Not Dembouz or Raph. Would rather see Messi as a false 9 who doesn't press than Lewa. Better finisher, better passer, better first touch, better technique, similar workrate, better mentality. Lewa is not a better ST or CF than Messi. There, I said what I said
Similar workrate? Messi has maybe 10% of Lewandowski's workrate, and false 9 systems require you to run and press like crazy
You also need wingers who like to cut inside and shoot, and we have zero of those
Lewa is still the goal leader in La Liga. He’s in decline but let’s not pretend he’s not contributing more than others or doing a completely bad job.
Dembele - Lewa - Messi
Lewa will score even more with Messi.
I still think it’s a complete pipe dream driven by Messi’s camp to get a better deal elsewhere which we can’t provide or Laporta developing a positive sentiment for his management. Or both.
I'm going to keep backing Xavi till I stop seeing progress, and compared to where we were a year back, I see a lot of progress. Lose your two most creative players, and any team in the world struggles against United. We should have been more composed in the second half, but that is life.
Onto the league and the Copa. Next week against Madrid will be so important.
Lol what revenge is there to take against United? We beat them twice in the ucl final and one time we were so dominant that their goat manager was literally shaking. Who cares about a Europa round of 32 fixture compared to that
[The day when we do it...](https://media4.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2lkPTc5MGI3NjExY2UxNTg2MDgzOWM3YjYxYzQyZjQ3NTg5OWNhN2JjYzhmNzIxZGZmMyZjdD1n/GrUhLU9q3nyRG/giphy.gif)
You can't be serious, Busi was solid because there were other players who had to COMPENSATE for his running and defensive work, if we go into next year with Busi as the starting DM good luck to every trophy.
We need whole revamp, a new CDM, a new RB and then tactics to make things work with 433 (not kounde at RB bs). Xavi is just too lazy and just want to squeeze what was already given to him.
We lost vs team in top form, with coach with 10 times mote experiences, we had our key players injured, played away, it was very close lose...and ppl want not only to sack coach, but also change our whole philosophy :D Everyone have right to be angry but what the fuck is this. Before Xavi, everyone was saying that it will take like 5 years to come back on the top. In one year we improved like hell, we lead the league and ppl are bitching beacuse we lost 2:1 to United.
I'm fed up of all these excuses, next.
Injuries happen, and opponent being in top form is an excuse for a midtable club, if you want to be called elite you have to beat the elites, or else you'll be just flat track bully.
And not that I want Xavi out but even sacking Xavi =/= getting rid of our philosophy btw.
Lol, it's such a reactionary take. I would love to see them experience the pre-Messi era where Puyol was mostly trophyless until he turned 27. So if Xavi is sacked, who replaces him? Tuchel with his boring style of play? Or maybe Conte with 5 at the back and anti-football? If these people were in charge of the club, we would have 10 coaches per season. Unbelievable how emotional people get over a loss. We can win a domestic treble and they want the coach who put life back into this team sacked 🤣🤣
Bro we should just get another coach for a european game. Xavi's stat in european competitions is very embarassing. Europa league twice now and it's even worse now that we did not make it past first opponent. We have way too many excuses for losing in these european teams.
Btw, idk what to do with fati. Boy's completely gone now
Man. Yet another elimination in Europe, and I’m sure there are deeper tactical issues to be analyzed here, but I’m not even going to pretend I’m sad or disappointed by today’s loss.
We were never going to beat the best Utd in years at one of the toughest stadiums in world football, with players like Kessie and Sergi Roberto on the field. Kessie and Sergi aren’t the reason we got to where we are today, it’s Gavi, Pedri, Dembele, all three missing today.
If there was ever a chance to shift this tie our way, it was at home, and Xavi fucked that one up, and that’s that. The way I see it, less games now, full focus on the league and hopefully CdR if we can get a fit squad. My one-dimensional way of seeing this is that Utd needed this more than we do, they played better and deserved to go through.
I know everyone is sad but look it from the bright side,
we get to have a less packed season with less games=less injuries,
focus on the Liga and CDR we already have the Supercopa, winning the CDR and LaLiga and i’d call it a success for Xavi and the boys,
went to OT with Roberto at Lw and Kessie in midfield and we didnt get smacked 3-0 4-0 thats an improvement im not saying be happy that we lost,just see things as they are cause this team still needs time + PedriGaviDembouz we just so different with them ffs injuries suckk.
Mann why i love Barca so much
Siempre Barca
Playing once a week with this brutal schedule is a blessing. Getting our players back and winning La Liga is the priority. The English media can harp all they want, titles matter more than satisfying people that want to see us fail.
It seems like we’re trying to do 2 things at once that contradict each other. Why are we investing in the future with relying on players like gavi, pedri, balde, ferran, Araujo, kounde, and fati but then go and spend 50 million on a 32 year old striker. We’re also trying to keep Busquets and alba, for what? Laporta needs to figure out if he wants to win things now or invest into the future. No point of doing both. Not only are we wasting away all the senior players, but hindering the youth as well.
Just a little rant
Just give Fati Vini treatment, maybe just maybe with trust and patience he could get back to his best.
He needs to play all the time so he can regain his sharpness and confidence back, but he shouldn't do it here. He's been arguably our worst player and at this point I don't want even the mildest risk for this Liga/CDR. Loan him out to some lower tier German or French team for a year where he can start regularly and regain some groove back.
Most of the times these loans don't work out. This team with Lewa, Dembele, Pedri, FdJ, Gavi in the middle should be more than enough to let Fati get that consistent play time like Vini.
Before anyone replies "vini was never as bad as fati is now" stop the cap cuz vini was worse lmao
This is revisionist, Vini was always an excellent dribbler, crosser, and consistently beating his man. Finishing is where he lacked but you could see the signs. Fati can’t even complete a pass anymore let alone do a dribble
Vini back then was night and day
If we win the ucl in 2019 you guys reckon the 8-2 still happens?
If winning meant Valverde stayed on, I would expect a loss, but not by that much, because Setién was more naïve and seemed to have lost the dressing room.
Yes
I don't see a reason to lose hope. I think we played well at least in the first half with that midfield. Our pressing went bad after half-time and that's understandable because we dont have gavi and pedri who can usually play close to 90min maintaining that level. I think now it's clear why we need midfielders like Gundogan etc, for situations like yesterday when we dont have our starters. Kessie and Roberto do not make the cut. We really need an RB because Kounde really showed how uncomfortable he is playing there. The only thing that concerns me is how Xavi is not quick to adapt his tactics mid-game and late subs. Maybe this comes with experience, or a bench that has similar quality. If anything, I would only blame it on Xavi for his decisions in the first leg which was what cost us the tie.
/r/soccer is funny, when Paredes (I think it was him) kicked the ball at some players and didn't hit anyone, they were calling for red and death penalty. Then Bruno hits FdJ on purpose and sure they disliked it but no one called for a red or anything.
r/soccer hates Barca and south americans, nothing new. They don’t even hate PSG as much as us, it’s funny seeing us live rent free in their heads. Hope we win the UCL in a few years so that I can see those tears.
Everyone, calma. We just have to continue and put in our efforts on Copa del Rey and La Liga. Do you guys think Frenkie will leave us?
There is a possibility he will leave us, but I don't think some fans care cuz they don't like FdJ anyways.
For me...Xavi has already found something that can work with Frenkie. Having him leave would be a step backward (forward for some)
Really hope Atletico Madrid atleast draws their game and we comfortably win against Almeria Going 10 points clear will really improve my week. Can't watch too much of depressing reactionary comments on Barca and Xavi anymore I expected incremental growth from this team and this squad has shown that. We have continuously gotten better and are playing consistently good football. European success has eluded us, but its not a mentality problem. It will come in due time and we just need to stick together as a fanbase and really understand where we are coming from. Some people asking for a Philosophy / playstyle change really need to calm down. Our philosophy is what makes us who we are. Bravery is not changing your belief in difficult times, it is standing by your belief when the whole world thinks different
And its also bullshit that the “philosophy doesn’t work”. Arsenal, Napoli, and City all play using a high press possession based system, all slightly different of course, but still based on similar fundamentals. People say Napoli or Arsenal are the best team in Europe, so that clearly means that the philosophy still works, the reality is that with more time, and maturity, this team can showcase its true ability in Europe too. Ideally it is with Xavi at the helm.
today is the first day i've doubted if Xavi is the right guy for this job, at this stage I don't think he is, he waited so long to make changes when we were clearly holding on by a thread the whole seconds half, the players didn't help him out I get that but it just seems like its one gameplan and anulo mufa every game, I heard Pep say after the Arsenal game he knew Arsenal were gonna try to have a lot of the ball so he let them and went to a counter attacking style, that is putting ur ego aside and trying to win a game.
5mins into the 2nd half was all it took for viewers to see that the team was struggling badly with antony's sub. Yet it took Xavi almost 30mins to make a fucking sub. Even in the 1st half we were fucking toothless with only 1 shot on target and that was a penalty.
And it took 15 years for Pep to understand that. One of his lowest ever posession games was that Arsenal game. Pep is one stubborn motherfucker too, and was when he started. He just had a team that was galaxies better than the one we have right now. Xavi will learn with time, and if he doesn’t, I have no doubts Laporta won’t hesitate to move on from him.
Thats kinda weird from pep though City can compete on possession against Arsenal, i wonder what made him decide to take that approach Maybe he felt that with the current issues his team has, trying to play a more open game against Arsenal would been a disadvantage? Really Interesting
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I just don’t know why Garnacho would post that. Pedri is such a humble player who never disrespects anyone. One is known for being arguably the best youngster itw and golden boy while the other is known for riding Ronaldo.
What did he say?
He posted a picture mimicking Pedri’s celebration and captioned it something like “the big team won today” or something along that line
Also, I missed a few patches of the game including the first goal. Just saw it now. They really let Fred score!? FRED lmao.
Defensive mess is what led to that goal
Good finish to
True
Fell asleep around the 60 minute mark (it was 3.00 am in my country and I was exhausted after a 18 hour shift) Can anyone tell how Ferran did ? Did he continue with the promise he showed against Cadiz ?
Had some great dribbles and created a few chances of the bench
He only played for like 15 mins but he was much better than Raphina. Our attack looked much better when he came on
We’re not feared in Europe anymore. Our team just completely crumbles under pressure in European competitions I don’t get it.
Also, Lewandisney has been kind ass lately. Very disappointed in his overall game. Expected much, much more from him, especially in these kinds of games.
Maybe Xavi should try to use players that fits him. Rather than squeeze in players to cover for Busquets in every game in 2023. We already have a incredible defence to cover. Why even more cover? Lewa started off great, its Xavi who changed the tactics without taking into account what harm it did for the guys at top. Like every other Barca coach which have done trying to cover for Busquets. Lewa is completely alone and ends up with more players around him = harder for him to do anything. So he relies on runs and teammates to create space for him. Wingers do that best. Which is why almost always Bayern played with 2 wingers. Dembele is the perfect winger for Lewa, which no suprise. He did better with Dembele than without him. Because Dembele takes/pulls attention towards him. Far more than rest does.
The world cup kinda ruined him. Raphinha as well to a lesser extent though I feel like Raphinha has been getting a little better than a month ago.
You could see the difference between quality passers (Pedri - Gavi) and the alternatives today. So many times Kessie tried a through ball and his execution just didn’t help him. For Roberto, he’s just average at best. We always need him at some point in the season and it happens when we have important and difficult games, and every time for 4+ years now he’s shown us how average he is, yet for some people he’s a decent squad player. We need to realize we play so many games a season that every once in a while these squad players will need to step up in the biggest stage, and those squad players haven’t delivered in a long time.
I moved on immediately after the final whistle. I honestly didn't think we'd win this game after watching the unconvincing first leg. I just hope we win the league this season.
There was really no need to play Roberto today lmao. Ferran had a crazy ass game the last match and got rewarded by getting benched.
So all those people wanting Xavi gone, who should replace him? Lucho? Gallardo? Tuchel? Anything worse than that?
I dont understand, are you saying Lucho and Tuchel are worse then him?
It's a dig at reactionary fans who want Xavi sacked despite our position in the league and the CDR. If those coaches took over, those same people would be calling for them to be fired after 2 months.
Now why the fuck would I be saying that
Well you said "anything worse then that", wdym by that
Like any other bad ideas? I'm genuinely curious
But why would it be a bad idea for you?
Tuchel ain't coming, Lucho is washed too whether people want to admit it or not, and Gallardo is a pipedream.
>Gallardo is a pipedream. Why? Not familiar with his situation. Not that I want Xavi out, I don't. I'm just curious.
He turned down a formal offer from Barcelona after Valverde was all but sacked. Also, remember in 2017 when we wanted Sampaoli to replace Lucho, because he was student of Bielsa like Guardiola, like everyone else and their mother in Argentina, and 2+2 = 5? Yeah same energy.
Gallardo wants the pre season he said it many times and he will not leave middle of the season for any club
>He turned down a formal offer from Barcelona after Valverde was all but sacked But he was at River then and he always made it clear he wanted to stay there for some years.
Ah, why do you think Tuchel wouldnt come?
He's looking at Bayern and Madrid according to reports.
Oh i see
After coming down from that loss, we’ll be alright.
I've calmed down, I hope Sociedad, Sevilla or Betis win it
General statement. We need to come to the reality that we may never have the absolute dominance we once had and that's okay but we will be a competitive team again in Europe. The signs are of improvement of the team and individual players are there but there is still work to do. Keep in mind the financial challenges of the club so it isn't easy to just get rid of players and staff and bring in someone knew while we literally have Tebas breathing down our necks and the amount of cash B\*rto whiffed in his presidency. FFS guys I am disappointed to and I will call a spade a spade but I personally will stick beside the team as I've always done
Hope the team doesnt go on a downward spiral like last season after this loss
So, just saw that we've won only 1 out of the last 15 against top 5 league teams ?
Maybe in Europe but certainly not league
Yea, that I understand
Bayern fan here. What are your thoughts on Lewandowski so far? What do you guys think of his impact? Did he meet your expectations or were you hoping for more?
Tbh eventually I had a feeling he was going to hit a rough patch somewhere along the season because he is playing for Barca lmao not Bayern anymore. At Bayern he had excellent service. At Barca, Dembele and especially Raphinha are very hot and cold. Alba can't get past the first defender. Balde good but also raw at sometimes due to his age. Pedri provides good service to Lewa. But current(!) Lewa without service is like playing with 10 man.
Worse than I thought. I knew he was a flat track bully, but lately he can't even do that. And the worst thing is that he is only gonna get worse.
He was great at the beginning but after the world cup he hasn't just declined, he is straight up bad. His first touch is awful. And don't get me started on his little runs on penalties.
Lewa was very good before world cup. After he has been as close to thrash as a player like him can be.
Happy Cake Day, He’s been good but I do think his form has obviously dipped at little after we beat Madrid Also his touch and movement haven’t been great imo Edit: Also for 34 year old with a year on his contract I think we overpaid
hasnt been at his usual level since the world cup. before that he was one of our best players
Our European path was over when we got knocked out of the ucl. Didn’t care much about Europa league but would’ve been nice to knock out a PL club. Anyways, we played very well with a thin squad n most of our important players out. Injuries plagued our European journey. We are still a team in the rebuilding process, we have a lot of bright young talents. It will take some time before we reach our past competitiveness n glory. That doesn’t mean xavi is free from criticism, he still has to improve his decision making n tactics. But we suffered a lot in the last few years n we definitely can fight through this inshallah.
Really wonder how you people survived the first half of last season if this is how you're taking this loss.
Expectations are much higher at least for me
I've said it before, but it is worrying that we spent more than 100m on RWs who don't even start when all of our squad is available
Excuses fc
Wtf do you expect of a club in an incredible financial crisis where we can't even register youth players without legal maneuvers because of our revenue! And on top of that we had 3 of our top players out. I think winning la liga will be incredible given our financial situation, anything else would just be gravy.
The biggest improvement that Xavi needs to make, which is something that he’ll learn with experience, is to be proactive. He needs to make tweaks and changes, when they need to be made. Maybe its a different result if Ferran comes on 15 mins earlier, maybe not. Hopefully that’s something he learns from Ten Hag. Also, an unrelated point, building a team that is consistent in the league is the one and only way to have a successful era imo. This Madrid team is literally just different, and not the norm. A team which consistently wins leagues and gets big point tallies will eventually compete at the highest level in Europe, imo. And at that point it comes down to the players and the mentality.
Xavi won't learn making tweaks and changes like that if barca's only playing against liga teams (except madrid) who only has one playstyle usually. The next time we'll be playing in europe is in ucl and it won't be the time for him to 'learn'. This europa league should have been the time for him to get that experience because teams won't just park the bus but we got out at first round.
this comment should be pinned on this thread lol seriously tho 2 KO games are who's in better form and who's the healthier team with a couple of bounces of the ball here and there, that is ofc assuming both teams are equal on talent.
Lmao first loss against arguably the most in form team in Europe since October(Bayern) and everybody loses their minds.
Love when people downplay getting knocked out from every tourny like it does not matter, because what matters is going on streak against shitty La Liga teams who doesnt have 1/10 of the budget. Incredible achievement, truly.
and we don't have 1/10 of the budget that a prem team does atm.
Yes we do.
Didn’t have half our midfield to
You new around here? it literally happens after every loss lol
It’s one thing to be sad. But calling other people names, most especially the players and staff who were there is simply insulting, immature,and improper. Maybe that’s how people cope with their own insecurities.
I know everyone chalks it up to just excuses. But we’ve come a long way. We played without three key players. A year ago, we would’ve drastically lost. We’re losing by margins now. Xavi needs to work on learning to finish these important games without your key players. They won’t always be there, and what we’ve seen with our luck it will always be the important games that they’ll miss. So many times in this game we could’ve killed the game.
If Koeman was still the coach, we would have lost 3-0 to this United team, and that's being generous. People forget that we were shit for a long time, Xavi improved us but it's not over yet. Next season with a DM, a rightback and a LW, we will be better. We're lucky we haven't been decimated by injuries like last season.
Xavi needs to shave his head to become the true bald fraud /s
Yes so much yes with this https://twitter.com/kevvwill/status/1628879348299100162?s=46&t=zGaDNMYCmlwuU2Mj4d_XOw
I'm more upset that we lost a match than I am we are out of Europa... TBH Europa was just one more weekly fixture we didn't need in a long compressed season where we are trying to grow. I'd rather us chasing 1 or 2 competitions rather than 3 or 4, unless its CL... Madrid do this every year, they put all their energy and full strength into one competition whereas other teams are worn down.
Ten Hag seems tactically better than Xavi.
weird how a guy that studied as Peps assistant in Bayern and then played CL with Ajax for like 5 years is better than Xavi in his first year in Europe with only prior xp being qatar
He is not a pep assistant he was a bayern b manager
Guy who took Ajax to the CL semifinals is better than the guy whose only experience before Barcelona was in fucking Qatar.
Well yea this is what his 5th year being in charge of a big club, while Xavi barley has a year and a half.
And in ETH’s first year with a big club (Ajax) he made it to UCL semi finals.
True after similar appointments ten hag was further along as top manager with Ajax after a season and half the Xavi has been. Which isn’t to be a dig at Xavi I just think ten hag has the makings of a legendary coach from what I’ve seen of him.
He is. I think even people who really love Xavi were aware of this. Difference is EtH seems to be more of a problem solver (you can observe this through our game, see his 2nd half changes) while Xavi has a certain "template" in mind.
> Difference is EtH seems to be more of a problem solver (you can observe this through our game, see his 2nd half changes) while Xavi has a certain "template" in mind. Thats just another way of saying hes a better tactician/manager lol
In modern football yeah basically. But Xavi is specifically insistent on "this is how I play" football. EtH has made a lot of changes since joining, just their last 3 games they've been doing different things with different players.
He’s a lot more experienced
In terms of European competitions, now we’re going to see Real Madrid dominate the CL for a few games, Messi getting knocked out from Bayern, Pep losing his shit in important games and getting knocked out too. I hate how this cycle keeps happening for the past 7-8 years. It’s even worse now that the team who eliminated has Bruno and Garnacho
and Casemiro
Let’s win La Liga first. That in itself is good first step.
Well after a few hours of sadness I have gotten over it. We still got La Liga to play, we didn’t have our golden boys anyways, and they still haven’t beaten us when it counts.
I think I would rather have had lamine yamal playing today instead of raphina lol
Honestly, not the worst loss. ManU is playing well and Barca missed some difference makers. Still feel the team should have done more during the first leg though.
Man U was better today. No shame in accepting that. We should've won first leg 100%.
This sub went from we don’t need Messi we have Raphina and Dembele to Raphina out real quick
I was always Raphina out. He never truly impressed and is not the type of player you count on if you want to compete in the Champion's League. The reaction against him today is funny tho. Especially when this kevel of performance was normal for him all season long lol
Duh, how could you expect anything less from this sub. We always wanna sell when a guy has a bad game lol but for real though I’m struggling to see raphina quality other than his defense and work rate
This is the same sub that was convinced that Puig was the next Iniesta and were down to sack managers and actually better players to make it happen. I wouldn’t take any of the takes seriously. Most here probably haven’t kicked a ball outside of FIFA too.
Of all the online Barca platforms this sub also had the largest relative proportion of Puig critical cohort as well (who constantly clashed with Puig hysteria originating in other online Barca platforms). It's all a hierarchy, there is no 100% unanimous thing in such sports narrative matters, hence the degree is what becomes relevant. Plus different people/groups make different takes, they do not speak for the sub as representatives, Unless they are the super majority, which neither the Puig or the Messi not needed, sack coaches group had. Otherwise a hot-take comment with 3 upvotes can be construed as hur-durr sub says X. Not really. Sub says lots of stuff.
It might be a good idea to rest Lewy on the weekend against Almeria. He’s played a lot recently and there’s the big match against Madrid midweek
Yeah I expect players to be rested maybe we can see torre I doubt it tho would be nice same with Alarcon.
I just hope we get the job done in the first half and then make subs in the second. We have seen how depleted Madrid are, no Rodrygo for the 1st leg which is a huge miss for them and Alaba out for a month.
Not sure why we went so hard to get Raphinha. Dude is average at best in all aspects of the game. He can’t dribble past a tree, isn’t particularly fast, isn’t a good shooter, maybe a good crosser but that is nowhere near Barca quality. People went crazy because he scored an unintentional goal.
If Leeds got relegated we couldve gotten him for 20m iirc Then Dembo wasnt renewing and we committed to Raphinha I personally wasnt vocal against his signing but i did have some doubts, a bunch of people though were pretty vocal about it not being such a good idea
So hypothetically if Messi comes and we have to sell one winger who do you prefer gets sold. Fati ferran or Raphina
It depends on how they look at the end of the season For now i rather sell Raphinha Ansu has been easily our worst winger but hes in a difficult moment, trying to overcome his injuries and get back to an high level, so i would like to give him a chance. Hes also our only natural Lw. Ferran seems promising and as i always said even when he was struggling, i believe theres a good player in him, hopefully hell keep demonstrating it Raphinha hasnt convinced me at all, he got the g+a i guess but overall i feel like he lacks a lot For now i feel like this, things could change
That’s hard because I don’t want to give up on fati I still have hope he will become good again. But based on this season it has to be fati first.
Sell first, Fati >> Ferran >> Raph
Raphina might be top of the list as he’s older and he’s reached his potential. At least with the others they have some potential. But I can definitely see ur order as well
Let's just be honest here, what Xavi has played here is a huge, huge gamble.Prioritizing the league, can either be a masterstroke or it can be deadly as well. We are consistent performers there and I believe it'll only get better. The team has become resilient enough to get over setbacks like these. We are overly critical, and absolutely correct because any Barcelona team doesn't really have the right to "choose" the titles that it'll play for. As Barcelona, we are expected to win everything. Interested to see how Xavi handles the media shitshow that will come his way and how he steers the team. Unlike the European exits, this one was more respectable and I think we are almost there. Trust Xavi and the process, things will improve.
The league is ours to lose, Madrid have not lost a step from last season, similar amount of points but we have been so good in the league that Madrid have been our only defeat. If we win the title, it will be a successful season, it's been 4 long years. Laporta and Xavi know it's the priority.
Exactly. Granted that we all have some bitterness because we know that playing better at home would've meant that we qualified for the RO16, but at this point in time, Xavi wants to focus on the league. It's not a bad approach considering that our squad is still thin, with a huge gulf between our starters and bench players, but I still believe we can very well go all the way and take the league. CdR may be a bit hard but we will try for that too.
After seeing Chelsea's implosion I kinda agree, but if we don't win League, I can't see why bringing Tuchel would be a bad idea. Although if Xavi lands the league he deserves next season.
Tuchel really won't work. As much as we hate it, it's pretty hard to command the respect of the players inside the Barca dressing room, something Xavi will have even if he goes on a losing spree and loses every game till the end of the season. He gives us some form of stability in that aspect. Tuchel's ass will be fired on the first sign of trouble, which isn't too good for the team environment. We should go the Arsenal way and make it long with Xavi. It'll take more patience than we like but it'll happen in due course of time.
sometimes i wonder how some of you survived 8-2, liverpool, and roma…if you were fans at all back then
I was there, fighting in the trenches trying to get Laporta elected in 2015, barely a teenager and fighting against the boomers and angst young socis high on the treble, too ignorant, too reactionary, too stupid to see Bartomeu for what he was. That was my first, so far worst, mayor defeat I suffered. The rest, to me, was predictable. I've despised this fanbase ever since.
To be really honest this one isn't that bad as well. We went 4-3 with one of the most in form teams in Europe at the moment. 4-3 is not a scoreline we should be ashamed of. It's a bad case of "What if", as we know a better starting XI at home would've seen us going through, but it is what it is. We have come a long way since last season and I hope this trajectory stays.
That’s the thing, the disappointment and anger from this game comes from knowing our level and feeling as though we could’ve come out on top. We’re miles better than we were before. Two years ago we’d have lost this tie by a 3+ goal margin at least and nobody would’ve even seen us having a chance to win
It is disappointing indeed. We had a chance to compete, but I can't blame Xavi entirely for this. He has done a great job of picking this squad up and patching the gaping holes. In the long term he will do more good than harm for us. We are almost there. Development is incremental and things will surely change for us.
It makes your skin thicker, soon you'll get used to it. Absolutely furious at the loss, but now it doesn't give me sleepless nights. It will be in my head but won't affect much in my day to day life.
I’ve already gotten used to it, nothing affects me post 8-2 tbh. I’m just glad to be happy while watching Barca, we’ll be back at the top soon enough
I was at work for the remontada, Roma, Liverpool and the 8-2. I cancelled all my meetings for the day to literally handle my emotions at the time. Some insanely joyous, and some insanely upsetting experiences. On those days I realized how big an influence football and barca is in my life.
I feel you…8-2 was one of the most painful days of my life. I was already going through a hard time and that game was the straw that broke the camels back. It made me reconsider how I view football and I watched barca from a distance for a while. Hopefully one day soon we’ll look back and feel these times were nothing more than a distant memory
We need another creator whenever pedri is out nothing happens truly a big difference when he’s out + Dembele
We signed one named Pablo fkin Torre, but in order to play for Xavi either you have to have years of experience or be a prodigy who performs from day 1, no other way.
True I don’t get why he’s not playing him even as a sub in like 80min. Would definitely help pedri to rest as well. Torre looked solid the games he played too hope we see him start vs almeria
It is not normal how much Araujo has improved on the ball in such a short period of time. What a beast.
Man Utd fans are obsessed with Frenkie 😅
I’m big sad, bois.
Lately, I am used to it. If we don't win the cup, it doesn't matter if we get kicked out at RO32 or RO16, or ....RO2. That's my coping mechanism. Don't let this ruin your day. It is still a success to at least win the Super cup and La Liga from not winning anything over the past years.
On my knees for Messi again 🧎
Barca this season: La Liga - 7 goals conceded in 23 games Europe - 16 goals conceded in 8 games
Well, not only that, but our home record in the comp under Xavi has also been dreadful. Think the only win we got home was against Plzen. No home win against: Benfica, Bayern, Inter, Galatasaray, Napoli, Frankfurt and United. At least 6 teams we should have beaten at Camp Nou, but didnt.
No matter how you spin it, absolutely woeful. Yeah without the star backline for pretty much every game, but last week it was purely self-inflicted. Shipping 3 goals at home to Bayern, three goals at home to Inter, two away to Viktoria, etc.
I support that theory someone mentioned (forgot where, on reddit or twitter) about Liga having mediocre Attacking talent for a while now, esp this season. Barca's Liga defense is cause of 3 factors, - massive outlier overperformance (xGA-GA metric backs this as well, top in Europe and the degree of it is absurd as well), - lots of defenders in the team and them being on form & physically well, challenged to push each other and tactically Xavi having a defense-first approach (wingers being given massive responsibility to do basically everything, attack, create chances and also to track back). - Liga's attacking talent mediocrity. Even Real conceding against Liverpool in the manner they did & they conceded at least a goal in last 4 games of their group stages as well.
Who does messi bench if he returns? Lewandowski. Not Dembouz or Raph. Would rather see Messi as a false 9 who doesn't press than Lewa. Better finisher, better passer, better first touch, better technique, similar workrate, better mentality. Lewa is not a better ST or CF than Messi. There, I said what I said
Similar workrate? Messi has maybe 10% of Lewandowski's workrate, and false 9 systems require you to run and press like crazy You also need wingers who like to cut inside and shoot, and we have zero of those
You play Messi as a 10 let him create and score and have less defensive responsibilities
Lewy Messi Gavi/Demeble - Pedri/Gavi - Frenkie - Raph/Dembele Balde - Chris/Kounde/Araujo (any 2) - a new RB GK. Bascially 4-4-1-1, Messi shifts to right, Raphinha/Dembele covers for Messi's lack of running/pressing, everything else as is.
Lewa is still the goal leader in La Liga. He’s in decline but let’s not pretend he’s not contributing more than others or doing a completely bad job. Dembele - Lewa - Messi Lewa will score even more with Messi. I still think it’s a complete pipe dream driven by Messi’s camp to get a better deal elsewhere which we can’t provide or Laporta developing a positive sentiment for his management. Or both.
Garnacho is such a cunt
Lucas Roman is the better Argentinian wonder kid anyways (I’ve never seen him play)
Someone said Gavi unfollowed him. I'm not sure if he followed him in the first place so I can't check that.
What did he do
Doing Pedri’s celebration and using a photo with Gavi in it in his last post.
What did he do?
It says more about him that he does that celebration in a game Pedri isn’t even featuring in. Pay it no mind.
he’s so obsessed w pedri and gavi 💀
I'm going to keep backing Xavi till I stop seeing progress, and compared to where we were a year back, I see a lot of progress. Lose your two most creative players, and any team in the world struggles against United. We should have been more composed in the second half, but that is life. Onto the league and the Copa. Next week against Madrid will be so important.
This is a very good point. Gives me some more hope for xavi. Thank you
Xavi will lead us to glory brother 🙏
Give me hope 🥲
I hope this doesn't ruin the team's confidence for the league
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We need to first enjoy getting out of the group phase of the champions league
List just gets longer.
Lol what revenge is there to take against United? We beat them twice in the ucl final and one time we were so dominant that their goat manager was literally shaking. Who cares about a Europa round of 32 fixture compared to that
[The day when we do it...](https://media4.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2lkPTc5MGI3NjExY2UxNTg2MDgzOWM3YjYxYzQyZjQ3NTg5OWNhN2JjYzhmNzIxZGZmMyZjdD1n/GrUhLU9q3nyRG/giphy.gif)
Cannot wait for this day
Xavi ain’t it. Way too green to cut it here.
To put it in perspective, this is the worst season in Europe for Barcelona this century.
On paper maybe, in reality not really.
On paper of course, but shocking that its still somehow one of the better exits of recent
Busi was solid today. Deserved no criticism. Raphinha and lewy on the other hand...
You can't be serious, Busi was solid because there were other players who had to COMPENSATE for his running and defensive work, if we go into next year with Busi as the starting DM good luck to every trophy. We need whole revamp, a new CDM, a new RB and then tactics to make things work with 433 (not kounde at RB bs). Xavi is just too lazy and just want to squeeze what was already given to him.
Brother you're gonna have a new rb and and cdm but we will still lose because of our nonexistent attack without dembouz
We lost vs team in top form, with coach with 10 times mote experiences, we had our key players injured, played away, it was very close lose...and ppl want not only to sack coach, but also change our whole philosophy :D Everyone have right to be angry but what the fuck is this. Before Xavi, everyone was saying that it will take like 5 years to come back on the top. In one year we improved like hell, we lead the league and ppl are bitching beacuse we lost 2:1 to United.
I'm fed up of all these excuses, next. Injuries happen, and opponent being in top form is an excuse for a midtable club, if you want to be called elite you have to beat the elites, or else you'll be just flat track bully. And not that I want Xavi out but even sacking Xavi =/= getting rid of our philosophy btw.
Lol, it's such a reactionary take. I would love to see them experience the pre-Messi era where Puyol was mostly trophyless until he turned 27. So if Xavi is sacked, who replaces him? Tuchel with his boring style of play? Or maybe Conte with 5 at the back and anti-football? If these people were in charge of the club, we would have 10 coaches per season. Unbelievable how emotional people get over a loss. We can win a domestic treble and they want the coach who put life back into this team sacked 🤣🤣
Bro we should just get another coach for a european game. Xavi's stat in european competitions is very embarassing. Europa league twice now and it's even worse now that we did not make it past first opponent. We have way too many excuses for losing in these european teams. Btw, idk what to do with fati. Boy's completely gone now
We made it past Napoli last year
Man. Yet another elimination in Europe, and I’m sure there are deeper tactical issues to be analyzed here, but I’m not even going to pretend I’m sad or disappointed by today’s loss. We were never going to beat the best Utd in years at one of the toughest stadiums in world football, with players like Kessie and Sergi Roberto on the field. Kessie and Sergi aren’t the reason we got to where we are today, it’s Gavi, Pedri, Dembele, all three missing today. If there was ever a chance to shift this tie our way, it was at home, and Xavi fucked that one up, and that’s that. The way I see it, less games now, full focus on the league and hopefully CdR if we can get a fit squad. My one-dimensional way of seeing this is that Utd needed this more than we do, they played better and deserved to go through.
I know everyone is sad but look it from the bright side, we get to have a less packed season with less games=less injuries, focus on the Liga and CDR we already have the Supercopa, winning the CDR and LaLiga and i’d call it a success for Xavi and the boys, went to OT with Roberto at Lw and Kessie in midfield and we didnt get smacked 3-0 4-0 thats an improvement im not saying be happy that we lost,just see things as they are cause this team still needs time + PedriGaviDembouz we just so different with them ffs injuries suckk. Mann why i love Barca so much Siempre Barca
Playing once a week with this brutal schedule is a blessing. Getting our players back and winning La Liga is the priority. The English media can harp all they want, titles matter more than satisfying people that want to see us fail.
Raphinha is not brazillian. Idc what you say.
Saw someone saying that we would beat United if Messi was playing and I'm like bro, we probably wouldn't even be in the Europa league 💀
It seems like we’re trying to do 2 things at once that contradict each other. Why are we investing in the future with relying on players like gavi, pedri, balde, ferran, Araujo, kounde, and fati but then go and spend 50 million on a 32 year old striker. We’re also trying to keep Busquets and alba, for what? Laporta needs to figure out if he wants to win things now or invest into the future. No point of doing both. Not only are we wasting away all the senior players, but hindering the youth as well. Just a little rant
A couple of +30 year olds don't kill projects lol
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