Barcelona were said to have done very good business this year having acquired the services of Sanchez and Fabregas in the summer transfer window. However many sceptics believed that their arrogance in the transfer market would cost them this year in light of the strengthening that underwent in Madrid.
Why the luck seems to have run out for Barcelona?
When Ferguson was questioned last year on the remarkable number of games played by Barcelona’s stars like Xavi, Iniesta and Messi, even he confided his amazement at their spell of non-stop football for nearly two and half years. Guardiola should have taken note of an astute remark of this comment from his adversary but in a different light.
Barcelona started the Champions League final last year with Mascherano playing in the heart of the defense. He did his duties admirably and perhaps the ease with which Mascherano and Busquets had filled in defensive duties led Guardiola to release Milito to Independiente. Abidal has been struggling for fitness in light of his recently discovered tumour while Puyol seems to have a permanent place in Nou Camp’s treatment room. The start of the season has also seen Pique miss out on a few games. All this has led people to question Barcelona’s tactics in terms of their transfers.
The ease with which Pato burst through the defense to slot in the first goal after just 26 seconds would have sent shivers through the spine of any Barcelona fan. They may have the attacking talents of Messi and his coterie at their disposal but to win any game, shutting out the opposition is also an important quality that seems lacking in the Barca squad.
Barcelona were lucky to avoid losing any of their attacking players to any serious injury last year. However this season is proving to be different. Sanchez has already been ruled out for upto two months with a hamstring strain while Iniesta hobbled out yesterday with many claims that the Spanish master would be unavailable for upto four weeks. While Affelay has yet to fit into the Barcelona setup the recent injury crisis would probably result in an increased amount of game time for both him and Thiago. Barcelona have no cover in attack with Sanchez out having sold both Jeffren and Bojan this summer.
Such a crisis would only serve to enthuse Mourinho who has done some really smart dealing with adequate alternatives ready should the need arise. So while Barcelona might still retain 80% possession they will struggle to match the Mighty Madrid with such paper thin resources.
Tags: Barcelona, Champions League, Fabregas, Iniesta, Madrid, Messi, Sanchez, Xavi
