Life after Pep - What next for Barcelona?

Following Josep Guardiola’s not so surprising announcement that he will be leaving the post of FC Barcelona’s Head Coach, the authorities acted swiftly and appointed his assistant, Tito Vilanova, as the Head Coach from the start of the next season. By doing this, they put an end to unnecessary speculation about Guardiola’s potential successor. A very bold and mature step indeed, specially in modern footballing terms.

All this, following a week in which Barcelona were twice found out on the big stage as fragile and one-dimensional. How Chelsea were allowed to score twice with ten men and Real Madrid bagged a comfortable victory at the Camp Nou, defies belief.

After 4 years of utter domination on the world stage, it finally looks like Barcelona have been sorted out by rival teams, starting with local rivals Levante and Osasuna and ending with the Clasico defeat at the Camp Nou.

Pep Guardiola – An era ends.

With a new coach but with more or less the same personnel, is it time to evolve a new approach? They have been labeled one-dimensional, after all. Yes, Guardiola’s approach to football was highly successful and would still prove to be good enough against most teams domestically. But to succeed on the continental stage time and again, they would certainly need to evolve a Plan B.

I do feel that Barca need to evolve a physical dimension to their play too, to counter physical sides like Chelsea. It was surprising to see Didier Drogba bullying and physically dominating the likes of Puyol, Mascherano and Dani Alves in both legs of the UCL semis.

The tiki-taka football that Barca employ is pleasing to the eye, but with teams sitting back and ‘parking the bus’, that just reduces to playing the ball side to side, without any real penetration. Opponent teams are willing to concede possession and territory to Barca and make them play in front of them, and relying on speedy counter attacks to inflict damage. A new physical dimension of their play would give them more options in attack and help break down teams better.

Andy Gray,the Sky Sports commentator (his ‘Take A Bow, Son’ is etched in Premier league folklore) who was unceremoniously sacked for sexist comments on live television, once famously said that the current Barca team would struggle on a cold, windy night at the Britannia Stadium against Stoke City and their direct style of play, and his comment may not be totally off the mark.

Another question that may come to one’s mind concerns the golden generation of Xavi, Iniesta and Messi. Is it time for them to seek new challenges? After all, they have won everything there is to win in club football. (Xavi and Iniesta have even won the World Cup, Iniesta scoring the winning goal vs Holland in extra time). Is it time for them to seek newer pastures? How about trying their hands in English or Italian football? Succeed in alien conditions against a more physical and high tempo English game or the tactical Italian game, and that would be a true measure of their greatness. Of Course, any club would have to break the bank to sign any one of these 3 superstars.

Xavi and Iniesta, outcasts under previous coach Frank Rijkaard, have come of age in the Guardiola era. They have dominated the Barca midfield with their astonishing pass completion rate and their eye for a killer pass or goal. It would really be interesting to see how the Braca midfield would re-adapt, if both of them were to move on to newer challenges. Cesc Fabregas, whose had a low-key time at Catalunya since arriving from Arsenal,would really have to step up to the plate and deliver week-in week-out, much like his Arsenal days. Even talented midfield prospect, Thiago Alcantara, would then have to deliver consistent performances to merit a place in the starting 11 for each game.

The case of Lionel Messi is perhaps even more intriguing. He is undoubtedly the fulcrum of the Barcelona attack, and Guardiola’s preference to play with a ‘False 9’ has suited him perfectly. It remains to be seen whether Vilanova prefers to play with the same formation and tactics. If he doesn’t, then it will be interesting to see the extent of Messi’s influence on the team. This apprehension arises out of the fact that how Messi, so prolific at club level, fails to replicate the same form at international level, with arguably the same quality of players around him. Football is a lot about tactics and formations after all.

Will the magic sustain?

The new coach, also, is a relative unknown, whereas Guardiola was already a Barca legend and a Barca man through and through. Till now, he was a part of the backroom staff, but would now be constantly in the spotlight as manager of one of the most well-known clubs in the world. That would mean intense scrutiny of his every action and every reaction. It would be interesting to see how he copes with all the limelight, for the step up from an assistant to head coach is a tough and not always successful one. (Just ask Carlos Queiroz, the United assistant manager under Ferguson, who went on to have unsuccessful spells at Real Madrid and the Portugal National Team). That is where another problem may lie. How much of an authority would Vilonova enjoy? Would he go on to stamp his style of play on the team, or would it be the case of continuing with Guardiola’s tried and tested methods? Would he be able to command the dressing room and keep dissent to a minimum?

So, the challenges that Vilanova faces are aplenty. Also, he would have to make some tough decisions right at the start of the campaign that would go on to define his reign at the Camp Nou. He would have to quickly decide what he wants to do with the super-talented and the super-successful team that he inherits. The Barca bosses would also have to show some patience with the new manager and give him time to work his methods and succeed.

Barcelona’s critics say that any manager could win the amount of trophies that Guardiola did with the kind of team that he had under his watch. Next season would really be the time to test this theory.