Public: Barcelona’s anti-Bayern Munich plan, a 4-4-2 diamond?

Well, here’s something to sink your teeth into – according to Sport, Barcelona plan to use a 4-4-2 diamond to bolster Bayern Munich in their upcoming clash in the Champions League. Blaugrana manager Quique Setien plans to place four midfielders behind Leo Messi and Luis Suarez, likely in an attempt to support Bayern’s creativity and the best player in the world.

Here is the front page of Sport, of which they are clearly very proud:

The diamond midfield will presumably consist of a quartet of Arturo Vidal, Frenkie De Jong, Sergio Busquets, and Sergi Roberto. Antionne Griezmann will sit on the bench under this setup, while Ousmane Dembele is out of the question. Most likely, both players will be available as replacements, should the need arise.

Now, as a Bayern Munich fan, I can see where Setien can go with (if the report is true). Bayern played a 4-2-3-1 with heavy emphasis on the wings. A diamond midfield would be an ideal way for Barca to broaden services to Robert Lewandowski broadly by supporting the midfielders’ fullbacks efficiently. It also gives the Catalans the chance to multiply Thiago Alcantara and Leon Goretzka in midfield, and opens up opportunities to play Leo Messi and Luis Suarez in dangerous positions for goals.

The problem is – this just seems like such an anti-Barca setup. Even if they are not at their best at the moment, you would not expect the club that takes Cruyff-ian principles to leave the 4-3-3 for a more defensive formation. Maybe Sport is mistaken, or making them too much out of a simple experiment for training sessions. Sure, if Dembele is fit enough to start, Setien would miss out if he did not match Joshua Kimmich on the flank.

Whatever happens, Hansi Flick will probably not change his tactics based on what Barca do. The report also mentions that Philippe Coutinho was allowed to play in the game, which is a hilariously irrelevant piece of info given the nature of the band. Also, here at BFW we will be sharing Barca and Bayern’s strengths and weaknesses for the upcoming game in the coming days, so stay tuned here. In the meantime, why not comment on what you think Setien is up to?