Luis Enrique

[vlad]

lucho as a coach is still beginner, he is still learning, at the moment, there is no better coach for barca except pep and he is going to city i wish lucho can stay many more seasons in barca because he can just be better as a coach.

 

[Gaudi]

lucho as a coach is still beginner, he is still learning, at the moment, there is no better coach for barca except pep and he is going to city i wish lucho can stay many more seasons in barca because he can just be better as a coach.

My only concern is does he has authority over players, because then he can learn and change things when needed, but if he doesn't then it's better, for him as well, to go as soon as possible.

 

[Neeraj]

Agreed. It's when you can see your team is heading in the wrong direction that you need your coach to make whatever change is required to stop the downward momentum. We've been thwarted for the forth game in a row, with us doing the exact same thing, only progressively worse. That's the frustrating part. If we tried something different and it still didn't work, fair enough..but coming out to play a 2nd leg, doing absolutely nothing for 20 minutes, just passing between your defenders (all while constantly giving Atletico chances to create danger)...it's quite bizzare.

Lucho should still stay here if he wins the league. I'm just very confused how the coach of the worlds biggest team can allow the team to play the way they did in the first half last night. Bizarre.



Just to make a quick comparison - Pep saw in the first leg of Benfica game that Lewandowski was being marked out of the game by the 2 CB's, and thus dropped him and played Mueller false 9. Quick adaptation.

 

[Messi+Eto]

Has been as clueless as Pelegrini for a while now. . .
If Messi is experiencing goal drought, and the players are EXHAUSTED, we are only one goal up and only in need of a goalless draw
Why not play 4-4-2 with Messi in the midfield, and mildly pack the bus?
This whole compulsory 4-3-3 shit is becoming increasingly predictable!
Let's face it, we don't play tiki-taka anymore, so saying "That's not the Barca way" is just BS!
Last seasons transfers was a HUGE failure and an absolute waste too.
Aliex Vidal and Turan haven't done anything at providing options or alternatives.

 

[BarçaBarça]

As most in here agree on, expecting back-to-back trebles was unrealistic, we can't justify being disappointed if we get the job done in the league, and maybe even the tough game against Sevilla. IMO this campaign has been a great succes if that happens.

We got knocked out by Atletico, who are a really strong side - if some in here are so disappointing they call for Enriques head, they don't understand how good a team ATM really are (we can't be expected to win against one of the best teams in the world every time we face them!).

We also have to think about the special negative circumstances under which the team performed in this campaign: A transfer-ban which meant that some players trained with us without playing (quite odd for any team) and a really weak bench with no real impact-subs besides Mathieu
(who always turn the game around ).

I hope we can keep ATM behind us in the league, our schedule looks fine, but our form-dip suggests that we will have a hard time killing the games early on.
But we have every chance - and it will be exiting to follow

 

[BBZ8800]

I don't know in which topic to post my thoughts, but now when we look back now, except in 2006, we failed miserably in EVERY SEASON when there was a World cup or Euros scheduled, and thus seasons were shorter and all top teams play too many games in March/April/May.

Check the pattern:
2009: no World cup or Euros, the season is longer and players aren't losing a focus=we won
2010: World cup coming, the season is shorter and crowded in last weeks=we lost to Mourinho's Inter
2011: no World cup or Euros, the season is longer and players aren't losing a focus=we won
2012: Euros coming, the season is shorter and crowded in last weeks=we unluckily lost to Chelsea
2013: Tito's season=we lost to Bayern
2014: World cup coming, the season is shorter and crowded in last weeks=Messi and some players "saving" themselves, we lost to Atletico
2015: no World cup or Euros, the season is longer=we won, lol
2016: Euros coming, the season is shorter and crowded in last few weeks=we lost to Atletico again and we are fatigued as fuck

One more interesting pattern, it seems that we also have higher chances to win La Liga in years when there is no World cup and Euros, since our usually "thin" squad gets more time to rest.
Look at this, lol:
2008' Euros=Real Madrid won a title
2009', no tournaments=Barca won
2010' World cup=Barca won
2011', no tournaments=Barca won
2012' Euros=Real won
2013', no tournaments=Barca won
2014', World cup=Atletico won
2015', no tournaments=Barca won
2016' Euros=??

So, in shorter:
1. we won CLs is=2009, 2011 and 2015, each year with NO World cup or Euros
-- so, we won in 3 out of 4 seasons when there are no tournaments (2009, 2011, 2013, 2015)
2. on the other hand, we won ZERO CLs in that time in years with World cup or Euros
= 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016, 0 out of 5, lol

It is somewhat similar with La Ligas:
1. we won them in years when there are no World cups and Euros:
= 2009, 2011, 2013, 2015=4 out of 4
2. we won them in years with World cup or Euros:
= 2010
-- and lost in 2008, 2012, 2014
= so we won in 1 out of 4 years

Some people will say that history means nothing, but it seems that some patterns are repeating.

It seems that we will have more chances in a CL in seasons 2017 and 2019.
Those are probably last Messi's years and our last chance with him in the team.
I hope that we will win at least one more CL with him somehow.

 

[Sorin]

Not to diminish Lucho's merits for last year's success, but people often forget that Xavi was a big catalyst of our turnaround. He offered experience, leadership and brain. Both on pitch when he came on and off pitch in the locker room. That's invaluable down the stretch of a season when everything matters tenfold. When shit almost hit the fan in January he calmed everyone down and the rest is history.

Now we have a bunch of gutless cunts who don't give a shit. Only Iniesta and Mascherano come close to a "Xavi" but they are still far off.

 

[Gaudi]

Not to diminish Lucho's merits for last year's success, but people often forget that Xavi was a big catalyst of our turnaround. He offered experience, leadership and brain. Both on pitch when he came on and off pitch in the locker room. That's invaluable down the stretch of a season when everything matters tenfold. When shit almost hit the fan in January he calmed everyone down and the rest is history.

Now we have a bunch of gutless cunts who don't give a shit. Only Iniesta and Mascherano come close to a "Xavi" but they are still far off.

I didn't forget, it's just that we don't have definite proof on what happened afer that Sociedad game...that is way I said I want to see Lucho changing the momentum now.

 

[Sorin]

I didn't forget, it's just that we don't have definite proof on what happened afer that Sociedad game...that is way I said I want to see Lucho changing the momentum now.

Then, imo, he can't do. At least to the extent of last year's turnaround. He doesn't have a presence like Xavi which was the deciding factor. Now the most representative players we have are Messi, Iniesta and Mascherano. Messi is no leader, Iniesta not to the extent that Xavi was and Mascherano is a leader but he lacks that aura of a legend ala Xavi, Puyol etc.

Also doesn't help that he can't impose himself in front of the trio. They do as they please. Play badly? No problem. Don't run? No problem. No one is there to tell them otherwise. In their fantasy world they probably think that they do enough but the others are failing them. Can't explain the lack of ambition and desire otherwise.

 

[vlad]

out of CL but still there is la liga and copa del rey, so much to play for, hopping that lucho can put things together, because with that kind of play, like against sociedad and atletico, its possible to lost la liga and that would be disaster, especially if atletico wins it after they kicked them out of CL

 

[Barcaman]

Lucho was right to ask for a forward backup. MSN (Neymar and Messi in particular looked dead). Board let him and the fans down.

Our winter signings that were supposed to help us failed big time too. Arda will be 30 next year too and doesn't look fit to clean Rakitic shoes let alone play Iniesta role.

 

[ThwiX]

It's too early to talk about him being fired or leaving. If we miss out on the league, we can get back to it. I think he's gone if that happens, anyway.

 

[barcanuck]

I'll take a domestic double is still a fantastic haul. Hope that's the end of this shitty dark few games.

 

[serghei]

If he wins the title and the Copa, he's got a better record after two seasons than Pep. Same number of titles, but a Copa del Rey instead of a Spanish Supercup.

 

[mazp]

I'll take a domestic double is still a fantastic haul. Hope that's the end of this shitty dark few games.

I'll take a win vs Valencia at the weekend. Baby steps..