Return of the Copa Catalunya, 4pmEST
By: Isaiah | September 9th, 2008It’s that time of the year again: Copa Catalunya semis. That’s right, Barça automatically qualified for the semifinals of a tournament. And Guardiola is going to field no first teamers for the match, which is being played against Sant Andreu in Sant Carles de la Ràpita at the La Devesa Municipal Stadium (Camp Municipal La Devesa).
As Guardiola has chosen a team consisting entirely of B-teamers, it only makes sense that Luis Enrique, the Barça B coach, would be the one in charge of the match. That way no one will be weirded out by a slightly different system and play dysfunctionally.
Here’s the squad list: Miño, Oier, Montoya, Verdés, Johnny, Botía, Fontás, Romeu, Polaco, Jonathan dos Santos, Rueda, Sergi Busquets, Abraham, Víctor Vázquez, Rochina, Carmona, Zambudio.
It’s nice to note Jonathan Dos Santos’ appearance in the squad, though I have no idea how good he is. For some reason I picture him as a smaller version of his brother, Gio, but perhaps more inclined to stay with the B program for a bit longer. Anyway, it’s not a power-packed lineup, but Sant Andreu isn’t the heaviest opponent, either. They finished second to Barça B in the Tercera division last year and also gained promotion to Segunda B.
So I suspect we’ll win this and advance to the finals, but you never know, so stay tuned for all the glorious action. You can listen to the game on Radio Barça or, I suspect, follow it on BarçaTV if you have a subscription.
If you know little or nothing about the Barça youth academy, you should know that it considers itself to be the best in the world. Calling out ManU, baby!
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And my favorite excerpt (on working hard):
“Quality players should also help each other out because you cannot win anything on your own. If you don’t want to do that, you better go and play tennis. Football is a team sport. So if we don’t have the ball, it’s not acceptable that only six or seven players are defending while the others are just looking and doing nothing.”
I repeat: I like this dude.
Posted from
United States
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That was a useful interview. I’m all for Cáceres playing left back and am pleased that they will take the time to develop him and Pique (who clearly isn’t ready for primetime IMHO but hopefully will be soon). These guys have a lot of talent and it will be exciting to watch them progress…
certainly more exciting than watching the grass grow while we wait out these WC qualifiers! I can’t wait for La Liga and CL to start up again.
Posted from
United States -
Hi all…nice to be back!
Regarding the Catalan cup, I would have preferred if pedro and the other young guys in the first team were added to the mix, they need every game, but I doubt they may be in international duty with under21…IceMel…U describe the season start perfectly, i can only sign under:)
Regarding the interview with Vilanova, I hope it make the nervous type fans more relaxed now, as I mentioned after the first game, no need to panic I still believe those guys know what they are doing, and specially regarding whom to select, and when, timing is really important when it come to young players like pedro-who is still a pedrito for me- Caceres and others.
Posted from
Germany -
An article in yesterday’s EMD: “Messi on the left, a tactical option”
No, *I didn’t write it!*. As I said a couple of times before, I think that that’s a very sensible and logical option; we are just too used to the idea of Messi playing on the right. But it looks that more and more people are beginning to put two and two together.
From BCN, feeling a bit proud of myself…
Posted from
Spain -
if Messi goes left, who’s going on the right? Hleb? Hleb’s not really a winger. Henry? what makes anyone think he’ll be less useless on the right than on the left?
i don’t see any reason to ruin the burgeoning understanding that Messi and Alves have to fill a position that we can just buy a (needed) player for. we need a winger anyway: assuming Messi (or Henry, or Eto’o) gets injured, we have Hleb and Bojan available. neither are natural wingers and then that’s it, for our attacking options. buying someone for the left gives us some elbow room in our possible attacks and keeps in place the dangerous new system of Alves and Messi.
the problem now is that teams can simply shift all their weight to the right side of the pitch and stifle Messi and Alves, since there’s no real threat from the left. we need a threatening left winger who’s willing and able to run at and around defenders and get into a position to score. Henry hasn’t been doing (can’t do?) that, so it makes it much more easy to play against us. add the threat to the left side and teams HAVE to spread their defenses, leaving room for all involved AND Samuel.
and yes, i hate to bring it up again; but when i think about it, the kind of player we need is exactly Andrei Arshavin. his willingness to run at the goal or touchline and make plays from the top 1/10th of the pitch is exactly what we need. tricky, creative, and dangerous if left unsupervised. that’s what we have to have on the left to complement the same qualities that Messi coupled with Alves bring on the right. Hleb does have some of this, but that leaves us with a VERY thin bench and with Henry sitting on it. the cleanest, simplest solution is just to buy a player, rather than playing musical positions and hope something works.
Posted from
United States -
But BA, what’s the harm in trying it out? We can’t buy a player till Jan 2009 anyway, so instead of waiting till then, I feel it’s time we mix and match. Out of 90 mins, try it out for 30 mins or so.
I’ll just copy paste what I posted on the previous topic…….
Right now, the left wing is weak with Abidal and Henry trying their best, but they just don’t seem to click. Now on the right wing we have Messi and Dani Alves, so basically we have 2 strong guys on one side, and no one on the other, so if Messi shifts to the left, we have equilibrium.
Secondly, if Messi plays of the left, IMO he’s forced to pass to a team mate, like the goal he set up for Crespo against Serbia I think it was during the WC. I say forced because he does not have the angle to shoot with his left and he can’t shoot with his right, so he’s going to use the leg he’s more comfortable with and hence he’s going to pass. If he’s on the left, he tries to cut and cut and shoot with his left, since he has the angle, but most of the time his shot is blocked…Posted from
United Arab Emirates -
One day Iniesta will prove me right when I say he is a perfect player for the left, I prefer Hleb beside Xavi incase only kieta or yaya played, he is a player who push the passing forward generating assists, rather than being entirely focused on turning the ball arround again and again, so hleb or kieta will be perfect complements for xavi while yaya guard them from behind.
I know no one will take this seriously here, but I know iniesta will have the chance to prove me right, and i will feel bit proud of myself as Genis did
Posted from
Germany -
And because it hasn’t been mentioned yet, the final score of the Copa Catalunya was 3-1 in favor of Sant Andreu, who advance to the final.
Jonathan Dos Santos did make an appearance, his debut for the “first team”.
Posted from
United States -
If teams shift all their weight to the right, Henry, Eto’o and Xavi put the knife in. No worries about that.
I’d also quibble about the “uselessness” of a guy with 17 goals and 20 assists, but that’s been hashed out already. You can’t give him the ball 30 meters from goal and expect him to work magic. That isn’t his thing. If you use a banana to hammer nails, you won’t get much wood joined, right?
Until the players decide to actually play Guardiola’s system the way that he has intended (which they clearly did NOT do against Numancia), we don’t and won’t know how well anything works.
Guardiola wants hard work, passing, movement and everybody playing defense. If that happens against Numancia, it isn’t 3 attackers on 9 defenders, and some of those attackers/mids are rushing back to defend that counter, rather than saying “defense, handle it. We’ll be waiting over here.”
I thought Vilanova’s comment about hard work and not standing around made the unacceptability of that maneuver pretty clear.
If Iniesta learns to keep the ball moving, he’s as good as anyone else. The problem with us isn’t the players, it’s the system and how it is implemented. The way they looked against Numancia, Rijkaard might as well have been on the bench. That look was also very different from the passing movement and team defense of their pre-season glories.
Arshavin isn’t coming, short of Zenit realizing that 30 million is too much for him. We have the players we have, I’m betting until next summer.
The next move is Guardiola’s.
Posted from
United States -
You know what I’m really excited for? Real games and not hum-drum talk (not that it isn’t interesting because it is, but it’s just talk, not review, not analysis).
Real games followed by more real games rather than by another international week. If we screw up against Racing (we won’t), we won’t have to wait 2 weeks to see the next move by Guardiola.
We’re out of the Copa Catalunya — big whoop — and Laporta is getting crap for that. Whatever, it’s the Copa Catalunya and we did the right thing by not starting Samu, Dani, and Sylvinho, though I do agree that Pedro should have been out there.
But Guardiola is at least doing what he wants (I think) and that’s good. Do what you gotta do, Pep, and let the rest of us natter.
When the first team has had a chance to catch its breath and to congeal a bit, we’re going to be better than most of us seem to think. Hell, we’ve got [insert our starting 11]. Who can top that?
Posted from
United States -
I agree with you Isaiah. It’s common to fall into the trap of overanalyzing everything subjecting every last shred of “evidence” under a microscope. The fact remains that the talent is there, and the club has brought in reinforcements while idenfying their weakeness from last season - defense. So I would be hard pressed to imagine that this unit can fair any worse than last season. But then again talent means nothing on paper if you can’t put it into practice.
One thing that is never going to change is that everyone in and outside of La Liga attempt to raise their game to a higher level when facing Barcelona. A win is considered a feather in their caps, and for some the “highlight” of their season. So Barcelona should take every match seriously, because I guarantee you Numancia surely did! Regardless of the fact they were opening at home, Numancia were looking forward to this match much more than Barcelona did.
Not to sound analytical myself, but losses to teams you “should” beat show a lack of focus. You can’t just roll a bunch of all-stars out there and expect that A.)The other team is going to cower and hide and B.)That’s it’s an automatic “W”.
I’m sure as the players get more settled to Pep’s way of thinking and philosophy things will run more smoothly. But expectations will always remain high, (and to some extent unrealistic) when dealing with a club of this magnitude. It’s not deemed “good” enough for Barcelona to win, they must win in “style” and against the weaker dregs, convincingly. Consider that for a 38 game season, not including Champions League play and other tournaments and one can only imagine the “pressure” the players are constantly under to perform. Professionals or not they are still human, and you can’t expect every game to be “pretty”, but as a fan you should come expect and demand that the “effort” be there.
Posted from
United States -
welcome back Ramzi, thanks for the props. I think I got your meaning (Kann ich nur unterschreiben?)…maybe we say “I could only add underlines” or maybe ‘I’ll co-sign it!”
Anyway my props (slang for “respect”) to you for offering so much on an English speaking blog. Ich hoffe ein tag dass ich kann genug worden haben fur ein Deutche-Barca-blog unterschreiben. Where is a good German Barca blog?
And to all you second language (third?) English speakers here (even the ones who call girls “Sheilas”: my hats off, thanks for making this a great place to hang.
OK now on to the formation Debate:
Messi AND Hleb on the Right AND left. Henry AND Eto’o in the middle. All four mixing it up..er “total forwardom”…Xavi behind the forwards. Keita AND Yaya as DM pivotes…guess you’d call it a 4-5-2 so no one actually thinks there are 4 forwards.
Ok it presupposes a fantasy relationship between Henry and Eto’o (did I dream that this summer?)…and probably presupposes a lot…but hey I can dream. It is possible to have a double pivot is it not? (Of course with Yaya the vacuum cleaner, I guess you run the risk of him stealing balls from Keita!
Posted from
United States -
IceMel, quit stealing my ideas!
Actually, I was a little different, but like you, it presumes a dual striker tandem of Henry and Eto’o, moving back to his Arsenal days. But yes, the “fantasy relationship” would be them working happily together. (Good luck with that one, right?)I actually had Messi playing just off of those two, then Xavi, Keita and Yaya, so sort of like a 2-1-3-4, crazy as that sounds. Everybody pushes up except for Yaya, who holds. It takes advantage of the Messi “chaos” factor, Keita’s offensive abilities, Xavi’s overall excellence and the abilities of Henry and Eto’o.
Note: There isn’t a real left winger, to leave space for Messi to roam where he pleases. And I don’t think that attack would need one. Might as well work with what you have.
Posted from
United States -
Henry and Abidal looking good today, let’s hope that’s a sign that the sun is about to come out of the clouds for both.
Posted from
United States -
on the “BA’s good pick!” front: Walcott nailed a hattrick today against Croatia for England. at 19. the kid keeps looking better and better. we should seriously look into him, he’s not an Arsenal fan by birth and wants to see the world. sunny Spain is a good start!
Posted from
United States -
Bojan has come on as a sub for Spain v Armenia. Hopefully his debut will go better than Messi’s for Argentina. Can’t imagine Bojan getting sent off at any stage though
Posted from
Ireland -
The question on Walcott is does he possess flashes of brilliance or is he mearly a flash in the pan? I agree, he’s not bound to Arsenal, and his “frustrations” have been apparent for some time. Personally I think the talent is there, but the consistency needed to play at a high level game in game out isn’t there…yet.
He lacks maturity, get’s easily rattled, and his constant “pleas” for more playing time can be seen by some in a selfish manner - putting personal goals/achievements over the team. Then again he’s only 19 so his “attitude” is about what you would expect from most teenagers - namely entitlement (reference Dos Santos).
Personally I feel he’s a bit of a stretch at this point. Although it’s hard to “prove” yourself when you’re not getting consistent playing time either. One thing I’m more “sure” about is that if Wenger remains flippant with him, Theo’s days at the Emirates may already be numbered.
Posted from
United States -
Hey guys - I’m already looking forward to this weekend, and (I could be wrong, but) I can’t seem to find any of the La Liga games being broadcast. Have the cable wars begun again?
Posted from
United States -
John, GolTV has them, and they don’t usually update their schedule until Thursday or so for the weekend.
2-1 Les Bleus. Abidal and Henry looked very good. So did Anelka, who came on for Benzema and really energized the side. The only down side is that the victory probably saved Dumbenech’s inept ass.
Henry’s goal was killer, taken through a sliver of space.
Cojonudo is right about Walcott. Pace and talent galore, but he has yet to make anything more than the “all potential” team.
Note that Dumbenech plays Henry as Wenger did at Arsenal, as part of a double-central striker attack, first with Govou, then Anelka. I was thinking, as Govou made that lovely lay-off for Henry’s goal “Hmmm, if only the other No. 9 would do that.”
Posted from
United States -
From the half the game I saw, Iniesta looked pretty exciting on left attack for Spain today. Despite the overwhelming scoreline I thought Spain looked over-confident a bit and vulnerable to counter…like another team we know. Hope there were no injuries, Armenian team looked like bruisers.
Posted from
United States -
Walcott is a bit like Diego Capel in the raw talent they both have but both need to be coached into becoming great players.
It’s probably something that could be said about Messi too. Currently he is probably the best players in the world but he could be better. Firstly he comes too deep to get the ball and he doesn’t always make the correct decision.
Another good showing by Nani for Portugal. He’s becoming very very impressive. Not too sure if he’s World Player of the Year material but would certainly be better value than other wingers I can think of.Posted from
Ireland -
John, Kevin is right about GolTV, though they’ve got their schedule up now:
Saturday -
2pm: Barça-Racing
4pm: Valladolid-AtletiSunday -
11am: Villarreal-Depor
1pm: Real Madrid-NumanciaNote that next week, Villarreal will be away to Numancia, meaning they’ve got our schedule 2 weeks off or the bizarro RM schedule 1 week off.
Posted from
United States -
Three months off for Silva! Some chronic ankle thing that he’s going to get fixed. Yow.
Maradona is calling Messi “selfish,” saying that he needs to work with his teammates better. Duh. Of course, Maradona calling someone selfish is like the pot talking to the kettle.
I saw that Caceres played the full 90 minutes at left back in Uruguay’s match. Hmmmm. Looks like we have a backup in the event that Abidal goes down and Sylvinho can’t get back from the hairdresser in time.
Over at Pep’s blog, there’s some website claiming that Guardiola wasn’t convinced of Arshavin’s ultimate quality, which is why a deal wasn’t done. Of course, I’m sure that his crazy-ass valuation had something to do with it.
Posted from
United States -
By the by, the TV wars have resumed. Might not be any TV for the Racing match this weekend. Stay tuned.
Posted from
United States -
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Nelly TailorPosted from
United States
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