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UEFA Champions League Postgame: Barcelona vs. Bayern Munich
(5:13)
The last time Barcelona conceded eight goals in a single match, World War II had just ended. You have to go back to 1946 to find a night that even close by would be as embarrassing as what took place Friday in Lisbon. Bayern Munich did not just dominate Barca with an 8-2 scoreline, they humiliated a team that was outclassed, outcoached and outperformed for 90 minutes, producing the most shocking scoreline in Barca’s rich history.
Here’s a closer look at Barca’s disastrous exit from the Champions League.
About before it started
Outside the riding scoreline, he felt it from the start. Whether it was some tired legs on the Barca side, the lack of sharpness in attack or Gerard Pique spinning in rounds, Barca had no chance. It all starts with highers-ups, who decided to hire a coach in Quique Setien. Setien has no identity and did not even have a case to get the job – one he lost just a few minutes after the final whistle. He clearly could not motivate his team when it meant the most and brought as much passion to the touchline as a sleepy Gareth Bale. Let’s be realistic – he looks like a nice gentleman, but has never won anything as a manager in his professional career. He would never be the person to give Barca back in glory.
On the field
But on the field there is hardly anything to get excited about. Lionel Messi can not do it all. The team whiff on more transfer goals than any other in the world and there is a zero confidence level from the outside. Sure, the teams know the potential is there, but they haven’t shown it in over a year.
With several starters on the wrong side of 30, this feels like rock bottom and / or the tipping point for a club dying to reach the top of the continent again. While Marc-Andre Ter Stegen scored eight goals, his terrible defense is to blame. Barca faced 26 nights on the night, 13 of which went on frame.
The attack produced only seven total shots, the passing was not sharp and too many chances went straight to Manuel Neuer. The coach gave his players an extra tactical briefing during the break, and after that their players had solid organization.
What comes next?
It’s more than just Barca failing to win a trophy in a season for the first time in more than a decade, it’s about what comes next. There will be turnover. Setien is already gone, and many of these players will no longer play for the club. Whether Lionel Messi is in that group remains to be seen, although he is under contract for next season. But would he really be willing to come back to the club after such a heartbreaking display? Chances are yes, but under conditions that things change immediately.
“I’m in pain,” Pique said after the game. “We are all. We can not participate like that. It is very, very difficult to take. Nothing more is worth saying. The club needs changes. Not just the players, I do not want to appoint anyone.”
Barca have upcoming summer elections that could shift the club’s mentality in the future, but at the moment it can not be much less. Better players are needed, especially defensive, and a tactician who can extract the best from these players, especially along the backline, should be the choice of manager.
The next several weeks will strongly determine which direction Barcelona goes, and the elections next summer even more so. Will it take a return from Xavi to get this team back to the top? There is a lot of work to be done and a little luck is needed for this team to really fight in UCL again. For now, it’s all about trying to find one kind of stability.
The club’s famous motto is “Més que un club”, which is Catalan for “more than one club.” At the moment, they hardly look like one.
