CL | 1/8 Finals: FC Barcelona - Chelsea 4-1 agg.

[DonAK]

No one has said this slow, sterile game is Barca style. In fact you're the one who said this system was going to succeed in the CL too based on being very balanced with workhorses in the team.
@BBZ8800

 

[FCBfan22]

This. You can check ball possession and it was 75% and 25% for Barce or whatever, but that was Conte's plan. He didn't care about possession. It's meaningless stat anyway. Possession means shit If you don't do anything with it and lose the ball all the time and concede goals.

FTFY

 

[jairzinho]

Chelsea + away + Italian coach + 5 men backline. I seriously don't know what some people were expecting, sometimes I think you guys started watching football yesterday. I was expecting a 0-0 and 1-0 in Camp Nou after extra time.

If we had Coutinho and Dembélé available and in form that's lots of extra creativity and pace and we might create 2 or 3 more chances but we don't right now. What do you expect with the likes of Paulinho, Rakitic, Busquets, Roberto? Only Iniesta and Messi can do something creative with the ball, the rest can only work hard and provide stability.

I'm seriously confused what people expected today.

I expected us to at least show some initiative in the final third.

Chelsea having a 5 or 6 man backline doesn't take away from how clueless, slow and predictable we seemed to be.

Had it not been for the post, we would have been looking at a 3-1 scoreline.

 

[messid10s]

You need luck to win the champions league and we had that tonight. Two efforts off the post by Willian and a defensive mistake by Chelsea gifting us a goal. Truth be told we've not been playing well for awhile and were lucky to get a score draw out of that game Chelsea were easily the better team. Hopefully our form picks up by the return leg and Semedo and Dembele can get a game. This result will mean Chelsea will have to come out of their shell a bit at the Camp Nou which will be to our advantage.

 

[BBZ8800]

Hold on.....

You were the one saying that we should be overly dependent on Messi and let him do all the attacking, why the change of heart all of a sudden? I thought since Messi was the GOAT we should give him the ball every time since he's more likely to create the best attacks out of anyone on the team. No need for Dembele or Coutinho since they're more likely to fuck up actions, am I right?

I can pull the posts up for you if you want.

You're 4-4-2 workhorse model has been brutally exposed as has your plan of letting Messi do all the attacking.

You were literally arguing in favour of this system days ago.

433 will have the same attacking problems
But weaker defense
442 will have the same attacking problems
But will have a better defense

About Coutinho: what will happen if we will just play the same, through the middle?
Dembele, the same. He can't cross since we are obssessed with short and technical players.

We need evolving in 1000s of areas.
We are laughing at Rm, yet they are better than us in crosses, set pieces and longshots.

All we have is fcking passing around the box till death and playing 1-2s through 8 defenders.

A qustion for everyone:
Didn't you have deja vu watching this match and remembered how sterile we were against Atletico, Atletico, Juve and similar?

All big teams will park a bus and we can't break the bus through the middle anymore.

Our only improvement tonight was:
A better defense due to 442.
And our midfielders weren't pushed away like little kids, like in the past, due to some physical strength.

But in attack, we are one dimensional since 2008.
It worked for 3 years, and since then we have a burden of "Barca's/Pep's" style in our minds and on our shoulders.

Btw, before Pep, with Rijkaard, we weren't that onedimensional.
We had set pieces, crosses, counters and longshots back then

I will always blame Pep to some extent.
It will take 20 years until we will move on from his legacy of one dimensional football with short and technical attackers and midfielders.

I know, I know... It worked backed then.
It brought us the biggest success in our history.
But now we will suffer for 20 years with a burden of his style on our shoulders.

 

[CanadianBlaugrana]

Despite the match ending as a draw I'm feeling a weight off my shoulders. Crucial away goal and from Messi too. Excellent!

 

[FinBarcelonafan]

Why are you saying free kicks? Isn't Messi great in free kicks? I think he has scored the most free kicks in LaLiga history. We are at least fine in free kicks, If Messi has range to score.

 

[Zincubus]

I'm actually dreading tonight's game , not sure I can stand to watch it live ....

Hazard is a real good player but tonight he's gonna look like a world beater as he continually slaloms through Rakitic / Paulinho then Sergi Roberto ..

Then our esteemed manager will bring on Paco and Vidal to shore things up

Well I was close ....

 

[Givenchy]

I know, I know... It worked backed then.
It brought us the biggest success in our history.
But now we will suffer for 20 years with a burden of his style on our shoulders.

agree with this last part. were still trying to find the next Xavi, the next Iniesta when really we should be finding a different style and adapting. the days when the main problem was 'plan B'.. well now plan A looks pretty shit. the huge wakeup call that our style was becoming dated was that 7-0 Bayern mauling. we looked so weak, it was men against boys.

 

[Centauri B]

I am very optimistic about the 2nd leg.

We will tonk them.

 

[Lelouch vi Britannia]

Chelsea + away + Italian coach + 5 men backline. I seriously don't know what some people were expecting, sometimes I think you guys started watching football yesterday. I was expecting a 0-0 and 1-0 in Camp Nou after extra time.

If we had Coutinho and Dembélé available and in form that's lots of extra creativity and pace and we might create 2 or 3 more chances but we don't right now. What do you expect with the likes of Paulinho, Rakitic, Busquets, Roberto? Only Iniesta and Messi can do something creative with the ball, the rest can only work hard and provide stability.

I'm seriously confused what people expected today.

Ah yes, the same old "muh Italian defense" excuse that gets debunked every time Madrid plays against these supposedly invincible defenses and scores 4.

 

[serghei]

The result is very important overall. We get away from a hard month, and depending on how Atletico do in La Liga in the next period we can start to turn our focus on CL more.

We can play better than this for sure. I'm sure that on Camp Nou we'll look a lot better.

 

[BBZ8800]

No one has said this slow, sterile game is Barca style. In fact you're the one who said this system was going to succeed in the CL too based on being very balanced with workhorses in the team.
@BBZ8800

Maybe I don't understand your wording.

I am claiming that we have more chances with a current 442 with workhorses than with 433s from the last 5-6 years due to:
Better defense, less conceded goals.
And some physical presence in midfield.

I am also not happy with our attack.
But then, if you put Dembele and Coutinho, you will lose defense and midfield and yet our attack will be the same old shit with passing around the box till death.

If you are asking for my dream style?
1. Good defense, like now
2. Some physique in midfield, like now
But, what we lack:
3. Some different attacking options in attack, like Ronaldinho, Etoo, Henry, Larsson.
Guys who could gave scored with feet, head and longshots.

So, if you can incorporate Coutinho and Dembele into our team, but if you can offer defensive stability, midfield stability and an attacking approach which will offer 2-3 different attacking options and NOT ONLY passing around the box and 1-2s, I am with you.

I am again saying that Rm is a few levels above us in a CL in terms of different attacking options.

Also, Barca and Pep's city are perfect teams for league competitions.
Our one dimensional style is perfect for mediocre midtable teams.
We can win domestic titles and Cdr with this style.
We are in fact better against midtable la liga teams than RM.

But... When it comes to KO matches against Atletico, Psg, Juve, Chelsea, Bayern then our one dimensional game turns into shit against big boys with goid defenses.
While Rm looks like a team another planet with 3-4 attacking options.

People reply to me all the time how we are winning La ligas and how that is a proof how Rm's tactics sucks.

Let's try to make a distinction:
1.you need one type of tactics for Getafe and Las Palmas
2.you need something different against big boys in a CL

In short: Barca is the biggest favorite for la liga with our style and our consistency
Rm is in this moment the biggest favorite in a Cl due to their attack with 3-4 different options and an insane mental strength.

So,in the future we will need some plan B.

About Barca's style wording.
Maybe I understood it wrong.
Csn you explain to me what do you guys mean with Barca's style?
Can you explain what type of attacking actions do you consider with Barca's style?
But please, don't reply with shortpasses and throughballs through the middle.
Or triangles, 1-2s abd dribbles through the middle.

Because all if that is connected with a middle.
And you can't do too much through the middle in 2018 anymore.

Why are you saying free kicks? Isn't Messi great in free kicks? I think he has scored the most free kicks in LaLiga history. We are at least fine in free kicks, If Messi has range to score.

I meant corners, if you were replying to me.

Our corners are either a waste or a shortpass to the edge of a box, and playng through the crowded middle again and again.

 

[unknowngenius10]

Unfortunately, Chelsea have always gotten good results against Barca b.c their only tactic is what works best against teams like Barca.
I feel very optimistic about the return leg.

 

[Horatio]

Very optimistic about return leg.

They had more chances than us and deserved to win.

No they didn't. An equal score is very representative of this game.