Compared to the heroism of the ‘Remontada’ against PSG,last night’s defeat at the hands of Juventus was sadly a much more mundane affair.
It was huge of Barca fans in the Nou Camp to wave their flags and chant for the team as the final seconds ticked away, but the occasion did not really warrant it. Barca was crushed i their own stadium.You don’t expect that in the Nou Camp, let alone in the Champion’s League.
Last night’s match showed Juventus magnificently resilient in defence and Barca less that heroic in any position, firing a countless numbers of duds at goal- a performance way below the required standard of a Champion’s League quarter final between two of Europe’s great clubs.
With his ruddy beard, and face bloodied after crashing to the ground from Pjanic’s heavy foul (inexplicably not booked) Messi may have briefly morphed into the warrior king defiantly holding off the enemy, but Barca has longed ceased to be the Camelot it was in Guardiola’s era.
With the exception of Neymar’s brief flashes of brilliance, as when he danced away from four challenges before running into Chiellini, this was a Barca easily thrwarted, incapable of scoring, and generally lacking creativity, or a plan B. The failure of substitutes Mascherano and Alcacer to have any impact on the game showed up the weakness of its bench.
What a contrast to Real Madrid a day earlier with a team battling its heart out and effectively against Bayern Munich, raising its performance still further with its substitutions, and having its victory delivered by Cristiano Ronaldo’s hattrick.
With Real Madrid on a roll, and Barca in need of recovring its punctured pride, the scene is set for a fascinating El Clasico on Sunday- although we know how these overhyped games never quite match expectations on the night.
Whatever the outcome this weekend, Barca needs to give some serious thought to renewing its squad and recovering its identity . This means a strategy that includes drawing on the best alumni from La Masia , stranegthening the mid-field , and having Messi as an influential, elder statesman.
However with Messi eyes on the Wold Cup in 2018-if Argentina qualify-it would be wise not to allow itself to continue to depend on him, and wise of him to accept he cannot continue to play in every game. He would be well advised to pace himself from hereon. Last night he did not look rugged. He looked old-and tired.
