FC Barcelona 2016/2017

[Adisa]

Couldn't find their thread so created this one.
Watched them a lot this season. They have looked poor in most games I've watched. They look tired and slow.
There was a Barca in decline thread a couple of years ago. Most including myself, dismissed it as too early. But have we started to see their inevitable decline?

 

[VorZakone]

Wouldn't say they are in decline but their transfers have hardly added anything to the squad. Arda is hit and miss and Andre Gomes is as average as it gets. Iniesta has lost the necessary mobility. What is up with Rakitic?

 

[serghei]

Every 3 seasons a massive change is needed. The Luis Enrique cycle seems to be over. This team, if they want to play with a front 3 that do little to no defensive work, needs 2 CDMs.

 

[BigDunc9]

Every 3 seasons a massive change is needed. The Luis Enrique cycle seems to be over.

Who will they replace him with?

 

[Eddy_JukeZ]

They've been awful since they won the treble in 2015. MSN have carried the squad since then, but the cracks are showing.

They didn't replace Alves adequately. Roberto is not a good RB. Their midfield is just awful nowadays. Iniesta and Busquets have fallen off a cliff.

Messi though doesn't help really. That 1 piece of him coming centrally too much ruining the team's shape was a good read.

 

[Bojan11]

Who will they replace him with?

Sevilla manager.

 

[serghei]

Who will they replace him with?

Sampaoli could be an option. Laurent Blanc another one.

 

[AXVnee7]

Is this Luis Enrique really that good? I don't know much about him and not convinced. Then again he has won the treble.

 

[Skills]

Not winning another CL with that front line would be massive underachievement IMO.

 

[serghei]

Is this Luis Enrique really that good? I don't know much about him and not convinced. Then again he has won the treble.

Based on what happened since the start of 2016, he is not a very good manager. Some massive tactical flaws are there to be seen. This PSG game is something that hasn't happened since the 2nd part of the 2012-13 season.

 

[PepG]

Yep, Luis Enrique has to go. But it will be very important who will be their next coach. If they hire wrong guy (Tata Martino type of a coach) it will be huge mistake and i can see some coming years of struggle.

 

[::sonny::]

Never understood why do Andre Gomes is so highly rated, I think he is a portuguese Nick Powell

Bad deals, Umtiti, Andre Gomes, Paco Alcacer...

Ter Stengen is average, Bravo was better

 

[Successful]

Wouldn't say they are in decline but their transfers have hardly added anything to the squad. Arda is hit and miss and Andre Gomes is as average as it gets. Iniesta has lost the necessary mobility. What is up with Rakitic?

They are most certainly in decline, or at least not as good as they used to be. They have 5 star attackers but the rest of the players are not as good as they used to be. I think they've been too cocky in the transfer market and also had a couple of years when they didn't have to do much with the squad. Now they're in a situation where they need to replace some players and upgrade others. A player like Iniesta is absolutely amazing but not AS amazing as he used to be. It's not easy to just get rid of him either - so you automatically get a bit shittier.

 

[serghei]

I think the front three have also declined a bit, in the absence of a working platform. Individual players can only take you so far in today's football.

 

[red4ever 79]

One word. Shambles

 

[Adisa]

They've been awful since they won the treble in 2015. MSN have carried the squad since then, but the cracks are showing.

They didn't replace Alves adequately. Roberto is not a good RB. Their midfield is just awful nowadays. Iniesta and Busquets have fallen off a cliff.

Messi though doesn't help really. That 1 piece of him coming centrally too much ruining the team's shape was a good read.

This has been the most surprising. They seem to lose the midfield battle to everyone who's willing to press them nowadays. Winning the midfield battle has little to do with possession. They simply can't stop teams having counter attacks anymore.

 

[Adisa]

I think the front three have also declined a bit, in the absence of a working platform. Individual players can only take you so far in today's football.

Agree completely.

 

[antihenry]

I think he biggest reason for their decline is Xavi retiring and Iniesta getting old. Those two are irreplaceable.

 

[Santi_Mesut_Alexis_87]

As i have said in the Champions League thread, no midfield, no party. It has always been their strongest point.

 

[Skills]

Iniesta doesn't look the same player. His trademark dribbles to break the press, and the first line of defense seem to be gone.

 

[#07]

When you have Messi, Neymar and Suarez you will blast most teams away. There is a drawback of gearing your team towards getting the ball to them quickly and relying on their individual brilliance. The cohesion of previous Barcelona teams is not present in Luis Enrique's current Barcelona. The midfield is not a big enough part of the team's build up to properly control games. By being more direct Barcelona are allowing games to bypass the likes of Iniesta and Busquets. In 90 per cent of cases it won't matter as Barcelona's forward line will frighten most teams into defending deep. Against teams of a similar standard to Barcelona, Enrique's style creates a vulnerability to aggressive pressing.

 

[Santi_Mesut_Alexis_87]

Iniesta doesn't look the same player. His trademark dribbles to break the press, and the first line of defense seem to be gone.

He has been injured many times in the last years.

 

[Keeps It tidy]

Andre Gomes just can not start matches like this right now.

 

[::sonny::]

Is this Luis Enrique really that good? I don't know much about him and not convinced. Then again he has won the treble.

I remember Luis Enrique when he was at Roma, the fans nicknamed him "il nullo" > Null, null and void

 

[Moiraine]

A bitter reflection ? (a certainly true one)...

Tiki Taka is dead. Catalan Academy's Golden Generation is old. Suarez is fat and slow and Neymar is over-hyped by the south-american ar$e-l!ckers. World's Best Player is half the player he once was and meaningless possession without the x-factor is being exploited and punished. The sooner they and their national team realize this, the better. Their problem looks much more worse as we are witnessing the end of their European domination and end of an era. Quite recently, Manchester City taught them a stern lesson.

I am pretty sure the other spanish giant will follow the same fate in a year or two when Ronaldo and Bale start losing their pace.

 

[AlecHDR]

They need Kante to do all the running and defensive work the midfield is missing. Kante, Rakitic, and a creative midfielder to replace Iniesta.

 

[cyberman]

They should have found the funds to sign Pogba last year instead of using him as an election tool.

 

[::sonny::]

They have not enough money to improve the squad, because they give all the money to Messi

 

[Fortitude]

Disgraceful all round.

 

[podurban2]

HAHAHAHA feck off dad!

 

[PepG]

They need LVG to lay the foundations for their next golden generation.

 

[Solius]

A bitter reflection ? (a certainly true one)...

Tiki Taka is dead. Catalan Academy's Golden Generation is old. Suarez is fat and slow and Neymar is over-hyped by the south-american ar$e-l!ckers. World's Best Player is half the player he once was and meaningless possession without the x-factor is being exploited and punished. The sooner they and their national team realize this, the better. Their problem looks much more worse as we are witnessing the end of their European domination and end of an era. Quite recently, Manchester City taught them a stern lesson.

I am pretty sure the other spanish giant will follow the same fate in a year or two when Ronaldo and Bale start losing their pace.

What on earth is this

 

[Cal?]

Couldn't be happening to a nicer club.

 

[AlecHDR]

They should have found the funds to sign Pogba last year instead of using him as an election tool.

Pogba is not the answer to people walking through their midfield.

 

[Skills]

Oh Barcelona... time to reunite with Pep?

 

[Santi_Mesut_Alexis_87]

They are done. They need a massive overhaul in the summer.

 

[podurban2]

They need a massive overhaul, two new CBs and two world-class CMs. Will take 2-3 years until they have a chance for the CL again, IMO.

 

[Peanut Butter]

It's what happens when you play the likes of Real Volcano every weekend - you get complacent.

 

[padr81]

Anyone else think that PSG have watched a blueprint of how premier league teams press City to dismantle them tonight. 3 men pushing right up, tenacious and rattle them. Tactically they have done exactly what alot of sides did to City trying to play out from the back and its caught Barca cold. That combined with aging players and no new Xavi could really mean Barca have a couple of seasons transition ahead.

 

[LuisNaniencia]

What a mess.