Champions League rout a wake-up call for Barcelona

Disclaimer: The opinion expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Sportskeeda.

This has been coming for Barcelona. Their fearsome reputation had already been punctured since Guardiola’s departure. And the recent annihilation by Bayern just blew the roof off their supposed invincibility. Anyone who watched the Blaugrana under Tito knew they were not the same strong side anymore. Laboured wins against ordinary teams and defeats to Milan and Celtic, the latter so easily dismantled by Juventus, just added more weight to the theory about Barcelona losing their cutting edge against other teams. The win against Milan in the second leg was great, but then Milan were awful and Messi had a great game. Even if Messi was fitter and had given his best, Bayern would still have scored those seven goals, so spineless is Barcelona’s defence; the only difference Messi could’ve made was making the tie into a contest by scoring a goal or two.

Losing to Bayern Munich – the best side in Europe at the moment – is no dishonour. It’s just a wakeup call. This thrashing was necessary to burst the bubble of Barcelona’s overconfidence on their weak squad, which blinded them to the fact that their defence is bad and their tiring squad has no real back up on the bench. One or two injuries to their key players and the team is split open. They should’ve signed at least one good defender at the start of the season.

However, the problem is not with the players alone. The decision to replace the aggressive, ambitious Guardiola with his timid, tactless assistant Tito was a mistake. Modern day football is all about tactics. Yes, players are important, but tactics are even more important. Under Guardiola, Barcelona were the most feared team on the planet. There was this insatiable desire to attack and win. Under Tito, they are expecting victory to just happen, rather than create it with new strategies. Besides, the hunger is missing as well. And the problem is Tito. He looks very content with a defeat, just the opposite of the winner Guardiola. One mistake from a player and Guardiola would spit venom on him. He benched Pique for several matches till Shakira’s beau showed more commitment and desire. Guardiola, Mourinho and Alex Ferguson – they all have the same aggressive, ruthless attitude and desire to win. They are all highly competitive and successful managers, which unfortunately Tito isn’t and never will be. Some may argue they still won the league under his tutelage. The league is easy, while Europe isn’t. I believe Barcelona would’ve won the league even without a manager. Barcelona demolished Milan in the second leg without Tito. If Barcelona want to rise to the same heights again, Tito must go. But it’s quite distressing that the Barcelona board and President still back him for next season. A coach who says the reason for this rout at the hands of the German heavyweights was the unavailability of some of their key players, while the whole world can see their weaknesses are a liability.

Barcelona are still a very good side; young, talented, with some of the best players in the world. All they need to do is to renew their hunger for trophies, which only a hungry coach and manager can generate. A good manager will teach them the right tactics. Good defenders become great ones when taught the right tactics. John Terry was a pretty ordinary defender till Mourinho took over. Pique is still one of the best in the world. Regardless of the own goal in the second leg, he made several important blocks that would have resulted in more goals and further humiliation for the Catalan giants. He and the others need to be told the right tactics.

In addition, Tito’s signings are bad as well. Alex Song is not the right kind of player for Barcelona. Yaya Toure was good. Once he left, they needed someone like Javi Martinez, a player who is tall, tough and adds ruggedness to the defensive side of the game. If they couldn’t sign any good midfielder, they should have moved Mascherano to midfield and bought another defender. The Argentinian, so successful at Liverpool, is cut out to be a midfielder, not a defender.

The Barcelona era is certainly not over. They were in a similar situation in 2008 when they sacked Rijkaard and Pep Guardiola took over. He got rid of the old guard and brought in fresh, hungry players like Pedro, Villa, Mascherano, Busquets, Fabregas and Sanchez, all of whom did very well under his leadership. The Catalans still are a young, world class team with unmatched ball possession. They just need an intelligent coach and a few fresh legs to support Messi and co. Neymar isn’t ready to come yet. Most probably he’ll come after the World Cup. In the meantime, they should get defenders and midfielders in the mould of Juventus’ Chiellini, Chelsea’s Hazard and PSG’s Lucas, who are fast and effective and would certainly add the zing that’s missing in their attack now.