Barça’s Achilles heel exposed

What should have a been a relatively straightforward Cup tie against Intercity turned into a dangerous game of Russian Roulette for Barça and very nearly ended as a huge embarrassment. The most serious charge was being outplayed by a theoretically much weaker rival - a team from the third tier of Spanish football. But it is not the first time it has happened. Barça lose control of matches far too often - as the minutes go by they become increasingly vulnerable.

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Afterwards, Xavi said that Barça had been “good in the game”, that the team is in a good moment, that a lack of effectiveness had only been an issue in the recent Catalan derby game and they needed to be more forcefulness in both areas against Intercity at the Rico Pérez. But the image that Xavi’s man left in both of those game goes beyond that. Barça did not control the second part of either of the derby or the Cup game at any time. Against Espanyol, they were able to make one last push right at the end and against Intercity, they took advantage when the rival faded through fatigue in an extra-time. Nevertheless, there were too many cracks evident in their game and were nowhere near having the kind of control which Xavi’s arrival promised - in terms of position and possession, there was nothing. During the last few minutes of the derby and the second half against Intercity, Barça were out of control.

One of the players who the television pundits pointed the finger at was Jules Koundé - one of the stars supposed to spearheard the “new era” at Barça on which the future should be should be built. He had a disappointing match - no intensity in the move that led to the rivals’ opening goal. He allowed Vadik to comfortably outleap him. He could have done much better in the equaliser that made it 2-2 and he was hardly involved in the game after that.

Jordi Alba, while excellent in attack, suffered when trying to defend against Soldevila; Bellerín looked weak and Eric looked completely lacking in rhythm after a long time without playing. Marcos had a bad day in defence and gave away the goal that made it 3-3. Only Araújo was up to scratch.

But Barça’s ills go much deeper than just individual errors. It is something systemic. As though the team is stripped naked and was left at the mercy of their rival as the game wears on. It happened in Alicante, but this season it has also happened in the second half of the Champions League game against Bayern Munich, in the second half against Inter, the first half against Madrid after going 1-0 down. Even in games that have not ended in defeat, such as those against Mallorca or Valencia, they have suffered from the same problems...

It’s a very worrying sign considering the games that are coming up for Barça - Atleti at the Wanda, the Spanish Super Cup, Manchester United in the Europa League… Barça need to make sure they are 100% in their games during the full 90 minutes and not fall to pieces. Gambling on last-minute heroics might solve the odd crazy night like Wednesday’s Cup game against a weaker rival. But it doesn’t seem like a good plan for the future.