Examining Barcelona’s European failure

For the second season in a row the players and coaching staff of FC Barcelona have been left red faced after an away day implosion in the Champions League.

They say lighting doesn’t strike twice but for the second year in a row Barcelona have thrown away a three goal lead in the knockout stages of the competition. Last season the Stadio Olimpico in Rome was the scene for what was described as an historic failure. This season it was Anfield. Roma had the added bonus of an away goal, Liverpool did not.

Last season the players vowed to learn from their mistakes but last night showed they learned absolutely nothing.

There are a number of ingredients that must be factored into this recipe for failure that Barcelona have perfected in Europe. The first of which is a lack of desire.

Club captain Lionel Messi surprised the squad last August when in their final preseason friendly he addressed the Camp Nou outlining his intent to bring the Champions League trophy back to Catalonia –  his teammates weren’t expecting such a statement and jokingly suggested he promised it so he’d have to deliver it on his own.

Lionel Messi is surrounded by 5 Liverpool players.

Messi has shown a strong desire to win this competition from the group stages and it was evident when he took control of the game against Manchester United in the quarter-finals and in the first leg against Liverpool. His celebrations showed his passion for the club. Even last night Messi was the only Barcelona player who looked to take on the ball and run at Liverpool. His teammates did not show the grit and determination of players who wanted to win.

It would be ridiculous to suggest the players don’t care about winning the Champions League of course they do but their actions from kick off didn’t show any desire. Credit must be given to Liverpool’s high press but Barcelona are used to dealing with being pressed when in possession last night they lacked composure and their passing was at times atrocious.

When looking at this successive failure in Europe Messi cannot be singled out, yes he was on the pitch last night but each and every single chance that Barcelona created was thanks to him. Barcelona took eight shots at Anfield last night Messi was involved in each of them. Five shots taken and three chances created.

Those chances created bring us onto the second ingredient of the recipe: composure. Barcelona lacked composure last night they knew one goal would all but kill the tie yet they failed to score something they do regularly. Messi can be culpable for one such error opting to take a second touch instead of hitting it first time, that touch allowed Joel Matip to get a foot to the ball. Luis Suarez snatched at his best chance of the game and Jordi Alba, a man who cost Barcelona the first goal, wasted a glorious opportunity on the stroke of half time when Messi threaded a through ball with perfection only for the left back to squander it.

Philippe Coutinho also had a tame effort that was easily dealt with by Allison in the Liverpool goal.

Barcelona’s heads drop after conceding the third goal.

The side’s lack of composure came to a head in the second half conceding two goals in the space of a minute. Barcelona are not famed for their defensive prowess but even still conceding two in a minute is utterly shambolic. The days of tiki-taka football are long gone from Barca but they are still a side that are comfortable in possession. Players like Sergio Busquets and Ivan Rakitic have been at the club long enough to know after conceding the tempo of the game needs to be slowed and the defence allowed to be regroup.

Instead they were shellshocked. As soon as the second goal went in the players faces told the story of what was in their minds. Rome. As soon as Liverpool got the third there was no doubt that a fourth would come and when it did it made Barcelona look like schoolboys.

Fortune favours the brave and Trent Alexander-Arnold was certainly brave when he took a quick corner finding Divock Origi unmarked on the edge of the six yard box. Spanish TV have calculated the Belgian striker had six meters of space between him and the nearest defender. A tap in to secure a fantastic comeback.

Again Barcelona lacked composure and the only explanation that I can conjure up is that in 90% of the games Barcelona play each season a corner is one of the best chance the opponent will get to score. Barcelona expected Liverpool to wait for Virgil van Djik and Matip to arrive hence the statue esque performance from the defenders. Marc Andre Ter Stegen was left flatfooted in goal as he tried to motivate his defenders for the corner.

So now that we have the key ingredients of a lack of desire and composure we need a chef to make the recipe work and Barcelona have found a Michelin starred chef specialising in failure in Ernesto Valverde.

Spanish TV shows Origi had 6m of space at the corner.

Before joining Barcelona last season Valverde had managed Athletic Bilbao for four seasons and he didn’t exactly light up La Liga with the Basques. Results under Valverde flatter to deceive, on the face of it back to back La Liga titles is a wonderful achievement but the football played by Barca at times has been dire.

Valverde has a tendency to take a cautious and opts for an overly defensive approach which is bizarre considering Barcelona are not a strong defensive team. Last season against Rome he set his side up to weather a storm which goes against the core principles of the club – Barcelona usually are the storm.

A domestic double last season with only one defeat in La Liga was enough to give Valverde another season at the helm. He may very well pick up another domestic double but that will be of little consolation to the Camp Nou fateful.

You might think Valverde is being treated harshly by the Barca fans but their dominance in La Liga has made the league title seem like a formality in recent years. When the chips are down Barcelona have to be able to go toe to toe with the best clubs in Europe in the biggest club competition in the world. For three years in a row Barcelona had to watch their arch rivals Real Madrid pick up that coveted crown.

This season Barcelona had to fight back and get their hands on the title. Valverde has failed to deliver. As mentioned he is a defence minded coach who has had his blushes saved by the greatest player the world has ever seen. Lionel Messi has carried Barcelona for the past ten seasons or so with the amount expected of him growing season on season as colleagues such as Xavi and Andres Iniesta leave the club. The void they leave has been filled by the Argentine.

Valverde has already signed a contract extension for next season.

Ernesto Valverde lacks the skill to manage a top club at the very top level. Two seasons in a row he has sent his team out to try and absorb pressure in a crucial away tie in the Champions League. With Liverpool missing Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino Barcelona should have been able to prevent the Reds from scoring four goals. They didn’t. Imagine what the result would have been if that pair were available.

Valverde has masterminded these failures but there is an onus on the players too. All of last night’s starting eleven were rested last weekend against Celta Vigo apart from Arturo Vidal who played for 22 minutes. Fatigue certainly wasn’t the cause of that performance.

The atmosphere at Anfield played a role in helping Liverpool turn the tie around but Barcelona are used to hostile atmospheres. Barca lacked a vocal leader on the pitch and on the sideline.

Messi wearing the captains armband tried to lead by example by creating chances and running at Liverpool. Ernesto Valverde didn’t shout or scream at his players. It’s hard to imagine Jurgen Klopp would be as quiet if the result was the other way around.

Barcelona’s failures in Europe over the past two seasons have to be addressed if the club wants to make the most out of Messi’s prime years. The Argentine has given his utmost to the club this season but if the club want to lift the Champions League trophy again he needs to be surrounded by players who can deal with the pressure of a crucial tie and a manager who is fit to manage at football’s top table.

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