This is the most tragic feature of BBZ and some other posters here. It is not pride, it is stubbornness. It is not "manly" or "alpha," it is childish. One cannot be a good thinker if they never admit they are/were wrong in some instance, and consequently they never grow. This is why BBZ has been like a stuck record ever since his appearance here, just recycling the same thoughts. He lacks the intellectual courage to admit he was wrong as well as to take a more adventurous position rather than his usual pessimistic gerontocratic philosophy.
You could say that I was stubborn with defending my countryman Rakitic at times.
About Cou, I honestly like his skillset.
It might be that he is ruined by Messi.
Or that he has a horrible mental strength and that he easily loses confidence.
Or both.
About other things, what if I honestly believe in them?
Why on Earth should I hate Pep for no reason?
With a contrarian argument, I could go to Real's forums and shit on Zidane and Cr7, just to be a contrarian, right?
About Pep, I don't understand some posters here.
Yes, Pep recycled basics of a Dream Team and lifted us to GOAT levels in those years.
But, still, he raised one or two aspects of our game to GOAT levels and weakened some other aspects.
A few years later, when his style has been figured out, he and us (Barca) didn't have too much options in matches where our plan A hasn't worked, like Atletico in 2014, 2016, Juve etc
For example, Mou had a similar path in early 2000s.
He won a CL with a crappy Porto with his weird anti football with defenfing, hoofing the ball ipfield as soon as possible, aiming for a CF targetman who will head the ball to two fast wingers, they will run with the ball into the box and either score or pass to that targetman to score.
Mou figured out a great combination of stonewall defense and a weird blitzkrieg attacking counters tactics and for 3-4 years teams were shocked and didn't know at all how to stop him.
Back then Mou was the best coach in the world.
Yet, when teams have slowly found ways how to not get killed by his counters (for example Barca in 2006), all teams started to play in the same way against Mou and his tactics weren't invincible anymore but predictable.
Now, I am not comparing the greatness of Pep and Mou.
I am just giving a comparison that it is quite possible to be the best in one era and meh and an open book 10 years later.
Mou still plays the same shitty tactics today, with minor changes.
But his football is not GOAT anymore.
So I really don't get what is so hard to accept that similar happened with Pep.
Again, imo, majority of you grew up with Pep's Barca and it has a special emotional place in your heart and brains.
So ideas like: Pep's football is finished or one dimensional to some extent, don't sit well.
On the other hand, if I would ask you: is Mou's football from 2003-2007 figured out and outdated?
People would say: yes.
Yet, when you ask the same about Pep's football from 2008-2012, our fans get angry, lol.
I have said 1000 times: every coach ever and every system ever in football's history till now got outdated after some time.
Yet, you guys think that it is different with Pep.
As if: his style will never die, never get figured out, and my favorite: "if executed properly, it would still work perfectly in 2030, 2050 or 2200, right?"
One big fat lol.
JamDav, when I say: Pep's Barca didn't cross, don't take it literally.
It means something like this:
Rijkaard's Barca had, let's say:
10 possession actions per match
4 counters
3 long balls from deep
3 crosses
While Pep's Barca had, my estimation:
15 possession actions
3 counters
2 crosses
0 long balls
Or finishing wise:
Rijkaard:
10 regular finishes from inside of a box with feet
5 long range attempts
5 headers after crosses
Pep:
17 regular finishes from insidw of a box with feet
2 long range attempts
1 header
So, don't read my words about no crosses or lobg balls in Pep's Barca in absolute terms.
But if you would dig deeper into numbers, you would clearly see those patterns how Pep traded majority of footballing aspects for a perfection in possession, passing and finishing with feet inside of a box.
And again, it worked perfectly for 3 years.
After that he became a victim of his style.
And yes, I know, he introduced some new things at City, like more counters and crosses.
But deep down, does Pep's football from City looks closer to:
1. Mou's Chelsea
2. Pep's Barca
3. Zidane's Real
4. Current Bayern?
My point: deep down Pep is still Pep.
80-90% of his Barca's principles are still the same in his current tactics.
And this is why imo, more or less he'll never win anything again.
He and his tactics are on the place where Mou was 4-5 years ago.
But our fans will never accept it.
