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In the absence of Lionel Messi, Antoine Griezmann was expected to face Eibar and lead the way for Barcelona. However, the Frenchman could not do it and his team drew 1-1 against the Basque team.
This is the latest setback for Griezmann, who seems to have lost his form again after his brief and brilliant spell immediately after his clear interview with Jorge Valdano.
The 29-year-old had played and played poorly in draws at home with Valencia and Eibar, as well as in the 3-0 Champions League defeat against Juventus that cost the Blaugrana the first place in their group and that it means they will have to face Paris Saint-Germain in the next round.
On the other hand, Griezmann did not play a minute of the recent 3-0 win at Real Valladolid in which Barcelona put on one of their best performances of the season in a new three-back system.
Ronald Koeman used that system again on Tuesday night against Eibar, this time starting Griezmann in place of the injured Messi, but it was not the same.
It is true that Real Valladolid and Eibar are stylistically very different and that the efforts of the Basque team also explain the different result, but Griezmann also had a much less impact than Messi had at the José Zorilla Stadium.
It’s getting to the point where Barcelona fans have to wonder why number 7 is still a starter for the team.
When he plays with Messi, the two seem to collide soccer. So even when Messi is gone, Griezmann cannot take over the team in the same way.
Koeman often eliminates the failed forward before the end of games, and Griezmann has been substituted 13 times so far this season since his 17 starts. On Tuesday, this was the latest example of that, as it came out in 66 minutes.
Only on two occasions has the Frenchman been hired as a substitute, since he is usually the owner or not presented.
On one such occasion, his skill saw him harness a tired Dynamo Kyiv team to score the last goal of the 4-0 away win in the Champions League.
He wasn’t signed to be a super substitute, but perhaps this is a role that Griezmann can play more often.
Starting it with or without Messi has not worked.
Source: m.allfootballapp.com
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