La Liga | Round 30: Real Madrid - FC Barcelona 2-1

Bobo32

Senior Member
All this talk is kind of overrated anyway. When defending a DM almost always drops in to make it a 3ATB/5ATB, or covers for a wide defender while CMs drop to cover middle. Personnel is what matters more

With Frenkie there there was at least a playing player, ready to advance from the back. You could easily transform that formation into the classic 4-3-3.

Yesterday, Koeman had three 100% defensively minded players just sitting back the whole time, and Busquets as a CDM. I'd say Alba and Dest aren't the most offensively minded wing backs eithe (Cruyff played Stoichkov in that position in his 3-4-3 right).

If you list yesterdays players roughly by their focus (attack, defence, or balanced) there were 2 very free attackers, 4 balanced players (2xMC+2xWB) and 4 mostly defensively minded players (3xCB+Busi). I don't think that is a winning balance in itself, and there were so many issues with the connections between the players as well. But compare that rough list of focus of the players to previous Barcelona teams and maybe this was one of the most defensive minded Barcelonas ever?
 

Richard.H

Senior Member
Woke up feeling even more disappointed with this loss. It hits harder when you realize we had a very long unbeaten streak and it came to a halt. We've just not been good against any top CL level side this year. The youngsters are good but not good enough yet to give you a WC performance vs PSG, ATM, and RM. The seniors don't have much fight left in them. The coach isn't exactly some master tactician. I'm just hoping we still take the Copa.
 

serghei

Senior Member
Do you guys think we would have beaten them before the international break happened ?

Not with the errors we made. Madrid didn't even have a great game btw. Just a normal, responsible professional display with minimal gifts. It's us that we were in shambles. Koeman and some of the players (the usual suspects, the frail ones, like Dembele, Alba, and Stegen + some of the youngsters like half-dead Pedri and Dest) just didn't show up and this gifted the game to Madrid and Zidane without them having to do much.
 
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bismp

Well-known member
We didn't have a great game,but we deserved a draw IMO. But, as [MENTION=15262]serghei[/MENTION] said, Dembele + Alba + MATS cost us the game and sadly possibly the title too
 

Birdy

Senior Member
All prediction models give us as likely champion.
They are based on xG modelling obviously, and the difference in xPoints this season is dramatically in our favor.

It's not in our hands any more, but it would be one of the greatest missed opportunities if we don't win it.
Nothing like last season
 

jairzinho

Senior Member
It's still possible to win it, Athletico are shaky, Real has injuries and still has CL to worry about. Would be crazy if we won it without even beating the direct rivals.
 

behindbrowneyes

Well-known member
We didn't have a great game,but we deserved a draw IMO. But, as [MENTION=15262]serghei[/MENTION] said, Dembele + Alba + MATS cost us the game and sadly possibly the title too

Yes, draw would have been deserved.
THe other part: At the end of the season, especially when it is close, you have a closer look on mistakes. If it won't be enough in the end, many mistakes will have led to it. Araujo's fuck up against Eibar cost the team 2 points, Mingueza's mistake against Cadiz cost the team 2 points, Lenglet had many fuck-ups and most recently his mistake against Cadiz cost the team 2 points.
0 points out of 12 possible against both Madrid sides is weak, but if something cost the club the title than it was the really bad autumn more than anything else. This is normal though when you're in a transition year, even more so when the club is being in turmoil.
 

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