And, suddenly, Juanmi, precise he, surgical in his final shot, turned into a treasure a monumental play by Canales that portrayed the decadent Barça. Decadent because he was not at all lucid in the first hour of the game, he woke up a bit with the entrance of Dembélé, turned into the Messias of a team and a sorry club, to finish without any speech seeing how Betis escapes to seven points, away every day that passes more and more of the Champions League positions.
He lost the game, he lost the game and, moreover, he lost his head because he attacked badly and defended worse allowing that gallop of Canales, prologue of the Betic goal that left the Camp Nou feeling the same as they felt with Koeman on the bench. It is the first defeat against Xavi, who discovered how complex, long and, above all, hard that the road to reconstruction will be. It does not beat the greats nor can it with direct rivals such as the Andalusian team.
Rotations thinking of Munich
To begin with, Xavi thought a lot about Munich. He thought as he stood in front of the blackboard betting on giving break to three key players: Piqué, Frenkie de Jong and Eric García. He thought later even when Gavi received a ball and ended up stunned on the stretcher half an hour into the game, sowing a few minutes of enormous concern. He did not know where the young Andalusian was, who received a ball in the face, the prologue of a second fall when he was trying to attack. And the Camp Nou was silent. Scared everyone to see how Gavi was put into the electric car, leaving the grass with extreme caution, fearing for his health, in addition to the fact that it will be difficult for him to be in Munich. This type of problem requires special care, always putting prudence before any decision.
Showed up Riqui Puig in the field because turning to Frenkie de Jong, suffering from muscular overload, would not have been the most appropriate solution, looking, again, at Munich.
Of more less
Barça, who had started with energy, the game slipped too soon from their hands. And that Betis came deprived of Fekir, his best player. But after the first 10 minutes the Barça lack of control arrived. There was no pause. He lost the ball so often that the Andalusian team took over enjoying a few moments of great calm. Very calm. Xav’s team collapsedi, fraying after that good start. Barcelona was disconnected because there was no connection between their lines. The defense lived under the powerful physical body. Nico, imprecise as he had not been seen before, was late for individual duels. And in the third inning he saw the yellow card that Asturian referee Gonzaléz Fuertes forgave him in both the first and second defensive action. Some initial insinuations from Coutinho faded as soon as the team. I did not know what Barça was playing at. Or to what he intended to play, sheltered in a manual 4-3-3 with a right-back to use (Dest occupied the band that previously belonged to centrals such as Mingueza, Araujo and Eric Garcia) but without cohesion or solidity. There was also no surprise for Betis, who had a quieter afternoon than he could imagine.
In those first 45 minutes the statistics indicated that Barcelona had control of the ball (59% possession, 62% at the end of the game). But it was a fictitious control, which led to confusion because Betis finished more (five shots, one on goal) than the Catalans (two shots, one also between the three sticks, that of Coutinho, caught by Rui Silva). So fictional because it was bland and innocent. It did not hurt Xavi’s team, who was restlessly attending the first half where his Barça was not what he really expected. A team without personality, which suffered too much behind. He suffered because he did not threaten above, leaving Memphis also dislocated, turned into an island. There were extremes (Abde on the right and Coutinho on the left) but they lived in different archipelagos. Each player was a universe without a common language between them. The start of the second half greatly concerned the Barça coach who went to Frenkie de Jong, assuming that he was not well, just after the VAR canceled Juanmi’s goal for offside. A technological decision that allowed Ter Stegen to camouflage his disastrous departure in that action. And plan B, which was actually plan A, energized, now yes, a Barça that was stuck.
Ousmane arrived and the sky of the Camp Nou, which had a twilight landscaper, maybe a metaphor, changed. It was night and, immediately, the light appeared. Barça had more electricity, taking advantage, now, of the amplitude of the Camp Nou. And in less than 20 minutes, four shots were signed by Dembélé. The four of them went outside. But that dark scenario changed until Betis, ready as it was, patiently awaited its moment. And thanks to a ride, an imposing ride by Canales, the Barça tragedy was precipitated. Monumental career having, in addition, the necessary pause to deceive Frenkie de Jong before Juanmi silenced the Camp Nou. Barça was turned off leaving, again, in the dark, without answers. Dumb and puzzled, he finished.
MATCH SHEET
Barça: Ter Stegen (4), Dest (4), Araujo (6), Lenglet (5), Jordi Alba (4), Nico (4), Busquets (5), Gavi (sc), Abde (5), Memphis (4 ) and Coutinho (4).
Changes: Riqui Puig (4) for Gavi (d. 35); Frenkie de Jong (4) by Nico (d. 57), Dembélé (6) by Coutinho (d. 57); Luuk de Jong (sc) by Abde (m. 81); Piqué (sc) for Lenglet (m. 81)
Coach: Xavi Hernández (4)
Betis: Rui Silva (6), Bellerín (6), Bartra (7), Víctor Ruiz (6), Álex Moreno (7), Guido (6), Guardado (6), Aitor Ruibal (5), Canales (8), Juanmi (8) and Willian José (6).
Changes: Tello (5) by Aitor Rubial (m. 62); William Carvalho (5) by Willian José (d. 70); Borja Iglesias (sc) by Juanmi (m. 81)
Coach: Manuel Pellegrini (7)
Goals: 0-1, Juanmi (m. 79)
Referee: González Fuertes (5), Asturian.
Yellow cards: Canales (m. 12); Nico (m. 41); Guido (m. 73)
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Reference-www.elperiodico.com