8 - Pedri

[BusiTheKing]

Our midfield yesterday:

Frenkie 1,2 touches pr. minute.
Busquets 0,9 touches pr. minute.
Pedri 0,7 touches pr. minute.

yes, he's tired but this is the type of player he is. likes to hang back and wait his turn. frenkie goes and makes it his turn. that's the difference.

doesn't matter how brilliant you are on the ball when you're not touching it.

 

[BBZ8800]

Are you implying (prime) Iniesta would have a hard time in 2021?

Are you implying that Pep's football wouldn't be as successful in 2021?
Oh, wait...

Would Pele be as successful today?
Or Maradona?
Or Romario?

They wouldn't.

When you think about Iniesta, you probably think about Pep's Barca = which doesn't exist anymore.
Pep's football can't win a CL anymore.
Spanish football can't win anything anymore.

So, yeah, if you would put Iniesta in a different era and in a different team against different opponents, you surely wouldn't get the magic from 2010'.

About Pedri, imo, you have a clash of two styles at Barca.
Pique, Busi, Pedri are players leaning towards slower, more sterile, possession game, where we have a slow transition and then we pass till death against a parked bus, waiting for a hole in defense or waiting for Messi to pull his magic (or Spanih NT play from Euro 2021).
And then you have Depay, Frenkie, Coutinho and even Dembele who thrive in a faster, more chaotic football with a fast transition and less possession.
And then you get our team where some players want to play faster only to be paired with guys like Busi who is still stuck in 2009.

doesn't matter how brilliant you are on the ball when you're not touching it.

I always have a feeling that he is not moving off the ball well enough.
And when he gets the ball, he plays first-touch-passes too often and passes the ball to someone else (aka leaving a burden of creation to someone else).
Something like = here you go, YOU try to create something.

He would fit well if he would have 2 Xavis around him or in Del Bosque's 460 formation with 6 creators.

But today, in Barca's team without true midfield creators and when the football is faster, I really don't get how will he be a key player in the future.

 

[vegitot]

Where do you guys see Pedri in the future in 433 formation in a faster, more direct, more chaotic post-Messi Barca?

1. he is not a CAM, his shooting instincts are horrible.
Someone might reply: but Iniesta didn't shot either.
Well, it's 2021, football has evolved and we don't have Messi now. CAM or the most attacking CM in 433 should be way more lethal than Pedri.

2. CM position? I think that he moves not enough for a classical Xavi's position.
Also, imo, he plays one-touch-passes too often which is putting the weight of being a controller to "someone else" around him.
Plus, Frenkie plays as a CM.

3. a pivot? No way.

Even Frenkie plays better with a different type of a CM partner.

Pedri plays better with a different type of partner too.
He pretty much fits into any kind of formation due to his ability to adapt quickly to the team.

 

[mc_lovin]

Our midfield yesterday:

Frenkie 1,2 touches pr. minute.
Busquets 0,9 touches pr. minute.
Pedri 0,7 touches pr. minute.

yes, he's tired but this is the type of player he is. likes to hang back and wait his turn. frenkie goes and makes it his turn. that's the difference.

doesn't matter how brilliant you are on the ball when you're not touching it.

Useless stats. Pedri takes the hardest positions to get touches from those 3. He positions himself furthest forward between the lines.

(...)

Sorry, but prime Iniesta would wreck havoc. Not comparable to Maradona, Pele etc pp who come from completely different eras.

 

[vegitot]

Are you implying that Pep's football wouldn't be as successful in 2021?
Oh, wait...

Would Pele be as successful today?
Or Maradona?
Or Romario?

They wouldn't.

When you think about Iniesta, you probably think about Pep's Barca = which doesn't exist anymore.
Pep's football can't win a CL anymore.
Spanish football can't win anything anymore.

So, yeah, if you would put Iniesta in a different era and in a different team against different opponents, you surely wouldn't get the magic from 2009'.

About Pedri, imo, you have a clash of two styles at Barca.
Pique, Busi, Pedri are players leaning towards slower, more sterile, possession game, where we have a slow transition and then we pass till death against a parked bus, waiting for a hole in defense or waiting for Messi to pull his magic.
And then you have Depay, Frenkie, Coutinho and even Dembele who thrive in a faster, more chaotic football with a fast transition and less possession.
And then you get our team where some players who want to play faster only to be paired with guys like Busi who is still stuck in 2009.



I always have a feeling that he is not moving off the ball well enough.
And when he gets the ball, he plays first-touch-passes too often and passes the ball to someone else (aka leaving a burden of creation to someone else).

He would fit well if he would have 2 Xavi's around him or in Del Bosque's 460 formation with 6 creators.

But today, in Barca's team without true midfield creators and when the football is faster, I really don't get how will he be a key player in the future.

LOL. An one leg Iniesta shit on Man Utd (Europe best defense) in 2009 final. If you think Iniesta could not excel today then you have some problems.

It's hard to ask Pedri to be a main creator when he doesn't even play that role in the team (different when he plays for Spain).

 

[malvolio]

Are you implying that Pep's football wouldn't be as successful in 2021?
Oh, wait...

It has nothing to do with the style teams play in 2021, which hasn't changed much since 2011.

Give Pep his 2011 Barca team with all of Iniesta, Xavi, Busi, Pique etc in their prime and they would smash any team around.

Yeah, maybe the emphasis is a bit more on physicality now, but the technical level of top young players has regressed a bit imo. They'd be chasing shadows, like Man Utd in the London final.

 

[vegitot]

Useless stats. Pedri takes the hardest positions to get touches from those 3. He positions himself furthest forward between the lines.




Sorry, but prime Iniesta would wreck havoc. Not comparable to Maradona, Pele etc pp who come from completely different eras.

What Busitheking means is Pedri doesn't ask for the ball often and probably too strict to his position. Though they play different roles. De Jong is more of a main man in midfield while Pedri plays a support role.

 

[JamDav1982]

Pedri is struggling a bit due to the fact the midfield cant take the ball from defence up the pitch... Busi is main culprit of this and last two games more or less couldnt/wouldnt move to take ball in tight areas of midfield. Then too often it is the pass from defence being deferred to Neto or full backs playing ball up the line. Both to attacking players om half way line.

Also the lack of pace in front line allows teams to push right up and play a high line.

Pedri plays in way to try and get ball in areas he can hurt the opposition but that isnt there with way team is currently playing.

For me last season some of his best football was also when he played deeper and took ball with game on front of him that is why I would prefer Busi to be told he is done and FDJ/Pedri play in a double pivot with an attacking mid in front of them.

Pray for Fati to come back fit and Dembele to find some kind of form as their pace is needed badly to stretch pitch and open up game for Barca.

 

[mc_lovin]

What Busitheking means is Pedri doesn't ask for the ball often and probably too strict to his position. Though they play different roles. De Jong is more of a main man in midfield while Pedri plays a support role.

Precisely. But I think he needs to take a support role. Like Iniesta did with Xavi.

 

[BusiTheKing]

Useless stats. Pedri takes the hardest positions to get touches from those 3. He positions himself furthest forward between the lines.

convenient cop out, isn't it? doesn't matter how you're positioning yourself as a midfiedler - if you go 10-15 minutes without touching the ball while your team is struggling, then you're doing something wrong.

also, i'd be willing to excuse it if he actually delivered something from that alleged advance positioning tactic but the kid had 0 key passes and 0 shots.

 

[vegitot]

Pedri is struggling a bit due to the fact the midfield cant take the ball from defence up the pitch... Busi is main culprit of this and last two games more or less couldnt/wouldnt move to take ball in tight areas of midfield. Then too often it is the pass from defence being deferred to Neto or full backs playing ball up the line. Both to attacking players om half way line.

Also the lack of pace in front line allows teams to push right up and play a high line.

Pedri plays in way to try and get ball in areas he can hurt the opposition but that isnt there with way team is currently playing.

For me last season some of his best football was also when he played deeper and took ball with game on front of him that is why I would prefer Busi to be told he is done and FDJ/Pedri play in a double pivot with an attacking mid in front of them.

Pray for Fati to come back fit and Dembele to find some kind of form as their pace is needed badly to stretch pitch and open up game for Barca.

Pedri will not play in double pivot role. He already played sometime last season and it didn't look good. His best role is still an offensive mid, like he said back then he prefers to play behind forwards.

Lucho gives him a very fit role.

 

[BusiTheKing]

Precisely. But I think he needs to take a support role. Like Iniesta did with Xavi.

absolutely ridiculous to imply that Iniesta had a 'support role'. he wasn't some Ozil drifter with sporadic dribble tours and through balls. he was absolutely instrumental in maintaining possession, cooling off the game as soon as it heated up. he was there for 90 minutes right in the engine room.

 

[serghei]

Double pivot is a bad idea. We need to play the 4-3-3 and work out the tactics in midfield which are horrible. And also eliminate the players who are physically past it. We play Getafe next, this match is a great opportunity to be starting players like Demir, Nico, Gavi, or Puig (unlikely, but still). Not all at once, but 1-2 can start.

 

[JamDav1982]

Pedri will not play in double pivot role. He already played sometime last season and it didn't look good. His best role is still an offensive mid, like he said back then he prefers to play behind forwards.

Lucho gives him a very fit role.

Pedri playing deeper last season had some of his best games and players are adatable.

In terms of what team currently needs he is going to struggle to play higher up park and way he did with Spain.

The role Lucho gives him is exactly same as he tried to play in first two games and it barely worked.

 

[vegitot]

convenient cop out, isn't it? doesn't matter how you're positioning yourself as a midfiedler - if you go 10-15 minutes without touching the ball while your team is struggling, then you're doing something wrong.

also, i'd be willing to excuse it if he actually delivered something from that alleged advance positioning tactic but the kid had 0 key passes and 0 shots.

Pedri had more key passes last season than many of Iniesta's season btw. He also had more key passes in Euro 2020 than any of Iniesta's international tournament.