Barcelona's defeat in Balaidos was tough to take for Luis Enrique's team, thrashed 4-1, especially considering they were aware of the danger which lay ahead of them. So what happened?
More than the debate about Marc-Andre ter Stegen and Claudio Bravo, or failure at key moments, it seems that Barcelona should also take into account the affects of the pre-season campaign which was atypical. Not only did they go on tour in the United States, but also played the Super Cup competitions in Spain and Europe.
Barcelona started at half-pace, with many key players on holiday after their commitments at the Copa America 2015. Luis Enrique also didn't have the chance to work in the tranquility of the year before, when they headed to England for a training camp. Instead they were going coast to coast in America.
On top of these difficulties there was also the calendar, which saw barcelona face Sevilla on August 11 in Georgia (5-4), plus the Spanish Super Cup clashes on Aug 14 in Bilbao (4-0 defeat by Athletic) and then Aug 17 (1-1 at Camp Nou).
Physical problems, falls in intensity and injuries are some of the bills that Barcelona are now paying. Despite this crushing defeat in Vigo, Barcelona have started reasonably, drawing 1-1 in Rome in the Champions League, winning the European Super Cup and playing at a decent level in La liga, just one point behind Real Madrid now.
The injuries and the FIFA sanction that have left Barcelona with a short squad - pending the possibility of registering Arda Turan - and they still have to head to Japan in December to take part in the Club World Cup.
However, is this something special for Barcelona or a general problem for teams in a similar position?
THE REST
Looking at the results in the fifth week of the season there is evidence of problems that teams with important pre-season games are suffering.
Valencia were beaten 1-0 by Espanyol and their coach Nuno Espirito Santo is living on the edge, with the fans questioning his work. In La Liga they have had three draws and a defeat, to go with just one win. In the ChampionS League against Juventus they were beaten 3-2 at home. They had to play against Monaco before the season, over two legs, to qualify for that competition.
Sevilla lost 2-0 away at Las Palmas. Unai Emery's team is bottom of the table, with two points from two draws and three defeats. They have scored just two goals and conceded eight. In the Champions League they started well, romping to a 3-0 win over Borussia Monchengladbach, who have changed coach. In pre-season they had the European Super Cup clash against Barcelona to play, which they lost in extra-time.
Athletic Club also were defeated, 2-1 by Real Madrid. Los Leones are 15th in the table after one win and four defeats, letting in nine goals. Their start in La Liga is mitigated by a win against Augsburg in the Europa League (3-1). They have had a troublesome pre-season, playing twice and beating Barcelona in the Spanish Super Cup, as well as playing four games in the Europa League qualifiers, against Inter Baki (2-0, 0-0) and Zilina (3-2, 1-0).
0 comments:
Post a Comment