Neymar – Suarez – Roberto: Control and efficiency

-By Sagar

Momentum. Confidence. Form.

Barcelona, going into the match, had picked up tempo, and were looking comfortable without their talisman Messi spearheading their attack. Once again it was the trio of Neymar, Suarez…and S.Roberto, who seems to be having his break-out season, that helped control the match. With Roberto, the talent was always there, it was a question of being able to express himself at this level.

BATE were never expected to get anything out of this match, but stranger things have happened in football. Sadly, for BATE, the game stuck to the plot as Barca ended the match with 3 goals.

Lucho looked to be experimenting with the team as he fielded 4 midfielders (correction. 3 midfielders and a S.Roberto, who the hell knows what his primary position is nowadays). It seemed like he was preparing for the Villareal and the R.Madrid fixtures, in case Messi is ruled out for the Clasico. Sadly, Rakitic’s injury put a wrench in his plans, and he had to push Roberto back into midfield, and introduce Munir.

The match was pretty straight-forward from the get go. Barca not only attacked and pushed BATE back into their half, they almost always won the ball back in a matter of seconds. But, BATE were never going to contest for possession, and they bided their time to hit Barca on counters. Which almost worked a couple of times, but Vermaelen and Mascherano were always on their toes, and saw through them all.

The first goal was because of a penalty call, from a clumsy challenge on Munir, which Neymar converted; he set up another one for Suarez, and then scored another one himself, set up by Suarez.

The team went about their business and won, and although the team might have had a setback in Rakitic’s injury, and the opponents were heavy underdogs, there were some glaring points, good and bad, about Barca.

The shrewd emergence of the midfield:



– Iniesta was back to his free flowing self. He glided across the field, looking to feed his hungry attackers, and he ‘used’ Neymar to full-effect. Much the same way Messi does. Same principle, but methods differed. He always fed Neymar in places from where he (ney) could utilize his new found ‘control tower’ prowess. It’s simple; Iniesta complimented Neymar perfectly, and was the frame that brought out the beauty of the picture.

– Busquets seems to have gone up a gear in the recent few matches, and his passing, vision and overall defensive play has gone up a notch. He suddenly seems to be more comfortable in the center-mid while attacking, and his mobility (Which was his one main hurdle to being a world-class CM) has increased considerably under Lucho, and he seems more ‘flexible’. A 97% Passing accuracy while trying to start attacks, speaks volumes of his passing capabilities.

– “The Roberto”. Put him anywhere and he’ll perform. That’s the status he’s fast gaining with his performances. After moving back to midfield just after 15 minutes, he still looked sharp, shrewd, and in control. He drifted to the right side of the midfield often, and his crosses have been much better than what Alves provides. He has finally come into his own and although, technically, he still doesn’t have an identity(CM? RB? CDM? RW?) he is excelling at all of the positions he’s playing in. Almost all of the counter-attacks had Roberto, in the thick of it, looking to feed the front two monsters.



The lopsided attack:

No Messi, and Neymar being the central piece, might be the obvious reasons as to why the attacks are concentrated on the left. But for players to not even make runs from the right, or to even offer an outlet on the right is worrying. This is where Roberto is trying to fit in and be that outlet, but it’s not enough, especially since Munir or Sandro, who operate primarily in that position, are almost non-existent. Sure they’re not as talented as some world-class attackers on the right side, but they seem to be dropping deep into the midfield and not offering much while going forward. Yes, the first penalty call came from an attack on the right, but they’re few and far in between. The right side of an opponent’s penalty box does not see much action when Barca is attacking. Very little. Everything is getting concentrated on the left.

It’s not criticism, but rather, an observation.

The main people who were involved in attack this match, Neymar, Suarez, and Roberto while going forward.



Even if you add Munir’s heatmap, someone who is a winger and should be offering a scoring threat from the right, one can see that he’s not offering himself as a threat in the box on the right side, but rather stays deep and offers width where none is required, and does not attack the box as much.



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The Defense was never truly tested, and few instances that where they were a little under pressure, was because of some suspect positioning from Adriano and his flat-footedness. Vermaelen and Mascherano were on point and alert. Alves was lively and always looked to get involved in plays. The entire midfield was on a song as they dominated the center of the park. Munir again did not offer much in attack, but he is proving efficient when he needs to track-back. Neymar and Suarez are picking up steam as the difficult fixtures are rolling in. It’s all about the timing now.

Barca:

Best: Neymar (A): Our MotM. Stats like ‘2 goals and an assist’ are things that can be misleading at times, especially when a penalty is involved, but it was his ability to put in perfectly weighted passes, and picking out team-mates (read Suarez) with impeccable precision that was the highlight. Let’s not forget those ‘quick-feet dribbling’. Be it the no-look long passes, or the elastico trickery, or even the ‘Messi-esque’ dribbling, he executed them to perfection.

Questionable display: Adriano (C-): If it was a team that offered threat down the wings, he’d be eaten alive, and maybe that’s why he’s not being played in such matches. He might not ‘need to prove’ anything, but he certainly needs to up his concentration and sharpness levels.

BATE:

Best: Chernik (B-): Despite conceding 3 goals, he was always present infront of the goal, and making sure Barca knew that. He made himself big and made some quality saves to keep the scoreline to a respectable number.

Questionable display: Mladenovic (D): Rash fouls in and around the box is never a good thing, and this should be defending 101. If you’re a defender and still do it, then it just means they were being over-run and just desperate. Not much he could do to stop the Barca attack. He tried, but failed and came out looking bad.

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