Was this a shock result? More like deserved.

-By Sagar

This was the fixture where Barca could give it’s B-teamers a chance. A chance at for them to show that they can lay claim to a position in the A team in the near future….A chance they fluffed. Quite spectacularly at that.

The back-line had Douglas, Bartra, Vermaelen, Mathieu. Midfield had Gumbau, Koptoum, Samper. Front three were Munir, Sandro, Adriano.

With a hybrid of bench players and B-teamers, Barca went out for an adventure which was a bit of an anti-climactic affair.

A majority of the 22 players on the field were from the 3rd division, and the quality showed.

There was no sense of tactics or game-plan as such from any team, and if there was, it was not followed. The ball was pinged up the pitch, players huddled around the ball, and even veterans like Vermaelen made basic, amateur-worthy mistakes by slicing the ball straight up into the air while clearing.

Contrary to popular belief, that when average players play with good ones they increase their skills, the situation was stark opposite, as the good ones made cringe-worthy plays and mistakes.

Is this why the Barcelona-B team has been suffering so badly? The players seem devoid of spark, and the ones who do have it, more often than not, were overworked as they were scrambling to cover for their team-mates. That was the case with Samper and Koptoum as they were always out of position trying to cover for Gumbau and Douglas.

A shout-out to the players from Villanovense as they put their hearts out to show the 10,000 people that they can play some exciting football. They put in quite a shift as they gave the hybrid-Barca team a lot of scares in the 90 minutes.

Barca for their part, were all over the place. The B-teamers were so focused on trying to win the match with individual brilliance; they forgot that the first team look for anything but that. They need players who fit into their system in a smooth manner without any fuss. This is not how you convince the first team coach.

Having said so much about the B-teamers, one shouldn’t glaze over the average performance of the first-team players in the squad. Douglas had a tough, and an exhausting game against an opponent from the 3rd division, and he didn’t come out successful from the match-up. Vermaelen was composed enough in the defense, bar a few scrappy clearances, and Adriano was almost an invisible entity.

Mathieu and Bartra were on their best behavior, and created quite a few chances when they went forward, but no one else seemed to have the ability to finish those chances.

Letting a spark inspire you to bring out a special play is always a plus, but when you try forcing it and hope that it will eventually just….pay out, is just ridiculous.

The youth players should know that, and ingrain it in their brains. Winning with a team-play>individual inspiration. Don’t they bump into Messi? They should ask him.

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Villanovense:

Best: Javi Sanchez (B+): The passion, the hunger and the intensity. This is what the youngsters from Barca should learn. Big occasion, and he stepped up, no, he jumped in. He put his body against shots and players, and made sure his team had a solid player in front of the goalie. Although this match was devoid of quality, it was not devoid of ‘heart’. Also the MotM.

Questionable display: Miguel Trinidad (C-): Where the intensity helped Javi, it backfired on Miguel as his overzealous attitude more often than not resulted in fouls. He was more focused on the player rather than the ball, and lucky for him that these set-pieces did not result in anything dangerous.

Barca:

Best: Samper (B): His first half performance is up for debate, but barring the 2 times he lost possession, he kept his head down and did what needed to be done, and more when he was needed to cover for Gumabau and Douglas. Second half saw him go a little more up front and his decision making was always fast and accurate. Short of sprouting wings and becoming Messi, there was nothing more he could do.

Questionable display: Douglas (D): He had a tough time. He could not show any quality going forward or while tracking back. Beyond disappointing.

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