The relationship of Barcelona coach Quique Setien with his players already shows signs of tension, and several sources told ESPN that they did not click from the first day.
Barça led the League in January when Setien replaced Ernesto Valverde, who was fired after the defeat of the Spanish Super Cup against Atlético de Madrid in Saudi Arabia. However, Saturday’s 2-2 draw at Celta Vigo, along with Real Madrid’s victory at Espanyol on Sunday, saw them drop two points behind Zinedine Zidane’s side at the top of the table with just six games for playing.
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Setien signed a contract with Barça until 2022, with an exit clause in 2021 if the new president-elect doesn’t want it to continue, but the results and performances have seen him quickly lose credit with the players and the board of directors.
Luis Suarez seemed to shift the blame to Setien in Vigo on Saturday. When asked to explain Barça’s poor visitor form, he told the reporter that the players were giving their all on the field and that “the managers are there for a reason.”
On Monday, Setien tried to downplay Suárez’s comments at his press conference ahead of Tuesday’s clash with Atlético de Madrid. He said: “These little controversies will always exist. Each one has his own way of seeing things. It is normal.
“I was not an easy player either. We have to convince the players that the common idea is what is important. The communication between us is good and I do not give importance.”
“When you don’t win, due to an isolated play at a certain moment, such as Celta’s tie foul, everyone sharpens their knives. This is the circus in which we are involved. But the relationship we have with the players is good” It is true that sometimes there are disagreements, but I don’t see any problem worth talking about. “
Meanwhile, footage emerged over the weekend of Lionel Messi giving Setien’s assistant Eder Sarabia a cold shoulder in the second half at Balaidos. During the drink break, Sarabia twice tried to transmit information to Messi, but the Argentine captain stayed away from him on both occasions.
Sarabia previously made headlines in March, when he was criticized for his language and behavior during the 2-0 loss to Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Sources have told ESPN that despite Setien’s best efforts, he and his coaching staff have struggled to beat the players, many of whom supported Valverde, since taking over.
Sarabia often runs training sessions, where there have also been conflicts. It requires intensity at all times, which has generated moments of tension, forcing Setien to become a firefighter.
Elsewhere, Marc-Andre ter Stegen has preferred to work with José Ramón de la Fuente as his goalkeeping coach instead of Jon Pascua, who arrived with Setien in January. The Germany international has a great relationship with De La Fuente, who has raised questions about the need for two goalkeeping coaches.
More recently, player doubts have spread to the board.
President Josep Maria Bartomeu replaced Valverde in hopes of causing a change in attitude among the team. But the results and performances have left a lot to be desired.
Setien has supervised 17 games since he took over, winning 11 of them, including all eight at Camp Nou, but the results away from home and the level of performance have raised concerns about his ability to manage the club.
Of the 11 wins, seven have been for one goal, with Barca struggling to make the most of their possession. Meanwhile, they have won only three times on the road, without achieving it in Valencia, Athletic Bilbao, Napoli, Madrid, Seville and Celta.
A goal was needed in halftime to beat third-tier Ibiza in the Copa del Rey. That was followed by a 2-0 loss to Valencia at Mestalla, when Setien played with three centerbacks. Those performances were attributed to initial problems, but that did not prevent criticism. After losing to Valencia, Setien said it was only “a loss.”
The elimination of the Copa del Rey against Athletic, despite an encouraging performance, added to the concerns and a source said the substitutions in the March defeat against Madrid at the Santiago Bernabéu revealed Setien’s lack of understanding of his team when Barça physically fell dramatically in the last third of the game.
Barça no longer analyzes live upcoming opponents, restricting itself to video analysis, and a source inside the locker room told ESPN that it feels they are creating their own problems by not working on positional play in training. Barça finds it difficult to create and score at times.
Setien was not Barça’s first choice in January. It was named after sports director Eric Abidal and CEO Oscar Grau failed to convince Xavi Hernández to take the job on a trip to Qatar. Xavi rejected the job because the timing was not right.
Another change of coach has not been ruled out if Barça do not comply in La Liga or the Champions League this season.
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