I feel we are being to negative about it. After the supercopa matches would you have signed yes to winning la liga possibly as invincibles and another potential copa couples with a cl quarter final exit? We probably all would have since we expected a way worse season.
Still, the position we were in and how the clear problems Valverde/this team have leave a sour taste after out cl exit. Especially with Real bossing it every year.
We really need Valverde to learn from this since they wont be firing him. We need A world class midfield that can create and a team
That depends less on Messi and has the hunger of a klopp team for example. Ever since the pep days (bar 2015) our team has looked uninterested and lethargic when it mattered most. And to add insult to
Injury our football is boring and safety first mourinho light style.
I really hope Valverde learns from this and makes the right call.
For now, lets focus fully on the copa though. Winning another double is rare. At this point we need to grab it and fully focus on getting that invincible la liga win. Domestically it would be one of our greatest seasons ever and we need to be gratefull for it and let our cl fuck up and clear team problems ruin this for now.
Don't think so.
First, you have to look at some things about our CL run.
We had:
1) Massive luck with draws. Played 5th placed Chelsea in EPL, and 4th placed Roma in Italy. Madrid gets this draw and we make fun of them for having an EL run, and discredit them after they win the CL with a similar draw. We couldn't even make the semifinal.
2) Luck in games. Chelsea hit the post 4 times, and could've scored 3-4 goals against us easily. We had Messi to speculate their errors and Courtois was a mess, that was pretty much all we did to get through. That and holding on protecting the lead because Chelsea almost played without a striker. If Chelsea had Dzeko on form, chances are we would've lost in England by some goals.
3) 4-1 lead in the QF after the first game. Totally undeserved, but still it's a 3 goal lead against a much inferior side.
You add those 3 points and you realise that it is very unlikely that we have the same luck next season. So if Valverde capitulated in Emery's style this season, maybe next season we'll get a super tough opponent instead of Roma. If you were schooled tactically by Roma, how are we to expect this team to win the CL next season when we will probably face better, bigger, tougher teams?
So, sure, going out of CL is not a huge tragedy normally. But going out when when you draw the 2nd easiest team and have a 4-1 lead from the first leg is unforgivable. Next season we won't have it this easy. Valverde will need to make this team perform not better than this season in CL. But much better. I don't think he can do it. He's not that good of a manager.
Sure, if Valverde stays, which he shouldn't, he'll have to dramatically change several things. He got so many things wrong in CL that I doubt he can do it. He'll have to stop being a scared little shit, he'll have to rotate properly, he'll have to remember that we have a great squad (full of internationals who play for their national teams in far tougher games than the ones in La Liga they are not trusted in), he'll have to drop his idiotic rigid 4-4-2 who got easily exploited by the likes of Roma and Chelsea away, he'll have to develop the young players, not just penalize them when they have off games by benching them. So many things he needs to improve on that the most likely scenario next season in CL is another exit before the semis. Because managers can't change fundamental things in a season by season basis. Some of his problems are in key areas that are needed in order to build a great new Barca team. He's just not the man for the job. This is a manager who is okayish if you need to get the last ounce of football from an aging team.
But going forward, the likes of Stegen, Umtiti, Semedo, Coutinho, Griezmann (if he comes), Dembele, Alena (needs to get integrated ASAP), Arthur. These guys will have to be the main men in our team, the new backbone. Them with veterans already, like Pique, Busi, Alba (getting to that status) and Messi will have to be the new Barca. How is Valverde going to develop them to the point of seriously challenging for the CL? Just don't see it. Lacks creativity, mentoring skills, lacks drive and energy to motivate this team, lacks a clear and cohesive plan for our offensive play etc. You have to do a lot more than just improve our defense by way of sacrificing creativity up front, basically replacing Neymar with a more defensive player like Roberto, Paulinho, or even Gomes in some important games.
