Re: Matchday 31: Zaragoza - Barcelona 20:00 CET/14:00 ET Sat, Apr 7

by Hamdyman Sat Apr 07, 2012 9:13 pm

Alexis put on an excellent effort, he's a real fighter ! Messi had one of those nights where he creates magic from nothing then misses the easy chances.

Really happy with the Pedro goal, not to mention it was brilliant!

The way we let Zaragoza get into the game was scary, mostly due to loosing the ball in the center and miss passing more then usual, which is generally the case when both our maestro's are not on the pitch.

Would love to see a Montoya solid RB and Alves on the pitch as RMF, an Alves that is not required to defend but keep his efforts for attack would be real headache for opponents.

by harhar11 Sat Apr 07, 2012 9:17 pm

The Franchise wrote:First thing I will say is I only saw the 2nd half, however what I saw I was VERY proud of the team and thought they did excellent given some very hard circumstances.

The pics of the pitch, I now believe, it was horrible..a shocking pitch..the grass was VERY long and you could see so many of our passes slow down far too much as they approach the target.

As for our opponants...you will rarely hear me say this, but I hope they get relegated. Constant fouling...that foul on Pedro was filth and he wasnt alone.

Thier sportsmanship was equally poor..Thiago puts the ball out at the hlaf way line with noone around him because on of their players was rolling on the floor. He didnt even have to put it out seeing as it wasnt a head injury, but he did anyway. And what do they do? Give it back to us deep in our defence half and then press full!!

Then you get the big bully Aranda being tough and physical, but as soon as he doesnt come away with the ball he throws himself on the ground lol

Postiga comes on and his first action is to burst into the box and have his legs collapse under him..

Just 60mins on the clock and I was already disgusted by their approch, from their actions to the condition of the pitch. I really hope they get relegated.

Given these situations, I was very proud of the way we played and I felt everyone did well. I wont single anyone out too much, but I really feel everyone did very well. I am glad Pedro got his goal, he didnt do much, but it was good to see him finish well and with confidence.

Messi's run to the left, cut back, second cut back and then through pass to Pedro or Adriano (I couldnt tell) was playground stuff...I was off my feet.

Sanchez is a strange man..he really is..one of the worst pitches and now he thinks its a good time to show his trademark aggression I am used to seeing..this was the Chile Sanchez I know..great performance and effort. His crosses and pass for Messi were fantastic, he took people on without a second thought and worked his tail off.

I know it will come up, so I will get the only negative thing connected to him out the way now.

He shot when he was in on goal from a bit of an angle...Cesc thought he should of recieved a square ball and Messi indicated he should of squared to Cesc too...I disagree..I think.

I saw the reverse angle and I felt that pass was on, for perhaps a split second at best..it was a difficult ball with a defender right there. Maybe he could of tried it, maybe not..but I felt it a big harsh for them to sort of berate him for not squaring it...Perhaps I need to see it again, but the reply I saw, I felt that pass wasnt on like they seemed to think.

And I did sort of laugh at the irony of Messi saying he should square it, like Messi would of done it himself lol

About sanchez, the thing is he is not a natural goalscorer/box player and because of that he tends to panic infront of goal. That's the part of his game that he need to improve..

by Hamdyman Sat Apr 07, 2012 9:23 pm

The Franchise wrote:
He shot when he was in on goal from a bit of an angle...Cesc thought he should of recieved a square ball and Messi indicated he should of squared to Cesc too...I disagree..I think.

I saw the reverse angle and I felt that pass was on, for perhaps a split second at best..it was a difficult ball with a defender right there. Maybe he could of tried it, maybe not..but I felt it a big harsh for them to sort of berate him for not squaring it...Perhaps I need to see it again, but the reply I saw, I felt that pass wasnt on like they seemed to think.

Exactly what a friend of mine and myself were saying, the pass had smaller chance to reach Cesc then Alexis trying it out himself. TV Camera perspective vs on the pitch issue here.

by Madvillain Sat Apr 07, 2012 9:27 pm

Pep should just keep playing Alexis out wide. I think this really helped him show his quality in this game.

EDIT: About the situation discussed in the post above: I agree. I also thought at first that he should've passed to Cesc, but then I saw how well positioned the defender was. I was directly in the line between the two and it was very unlikely that ball would've ended in Cesc's feet if Sánchez had attempted a pass. His shot on goal could've been better obviously.

by RealGunner Sat Apr 07, 2012 10:55 pm

First half was pretty poor, Keita probably gave his worst performance in recent times. Fabregas and thiago couldn't control the midfield properly either against a very aggresive zaragoza side.

The min pep replaced Keita with Busuqets, the game was in barcelona's hands. Changed the game basically and another example how vital he is.

Great moment for messi with the 60th goal, and pedro finally scored. Fabregas was awesome as always Heart

by The Sanchez Sat Apr 07, 2012 11:39 pm

Fabregas just doesn't look comfortable with Thiago as his partner. He played so much better when Busquests came on and play some good passes and crucial game play. Kieta was rubbish but then again I thought with the conditions, he would have been suited. Sanchez played well, Messi as usual was good and it was good to see Montoya have a go. Getafe next and well Im sure we will play the trio of Busquests, Xavi and Inestia. Also Adriano was less than impressive and he should have had a low cross to Cesc though whether Cesc would finish it, is another thing...

by shinigami99 Sun Apr 08, 2012 1:00 am

I don't really rate Keita, especially when used as a DM. If we have to use him, then play him as any midfielder besides a DM. He wasn't that good today.

Messi was good but I think he needs to be a LITTLE more ruthless. That said, at least he's kicking penalties in different direction rather than in one general area all the time.

MotM for me would be either Alexis or Cesc...

by BarcaKizz Sun Apr 08, 2012 4:10 am

I agree completely with Dani... Zaragoza were disgraceful. A rare combination of almost everything you can do which qualifies as bad sportsmanship in football.

Went nuts when Pedro scored, I was so happy. Great play from him and Messi and he finally finished. Good to see because he was pretty horrid the rest of the night. Looking forward to Afellay's comeback because at this rate I'd like to see a lot of him.

Alexis was excellent. Missed a couple of chances badly, otherwise he had an A+ game. I agree, the shot was definitely on. Such a hard worker which is what I love to see, he even has this on Pedro it seems. Dribbled well, held it up, passing was excellent. Plenty more he can offer, but a great game nonetheless.

Busquets changed the game, the man is an incredible player. So underrated. After Xavi and Iniesta leave he will be the star of our midfield, not Fab or Thiago, but Sergio.

Adriano playing instead of Puyol showed for me. A lot more width and energy down that flank.

Messi's finish was ace. 60 goals :bow:

.

Good to see some of Montoya, a very tidy player. Never fails to impress.

by alexjanosik Sun Apr 08, 2012 4:42 am

The pitch was terrible but there is no use crying about it.
Its clear to me that from now on we are going to face pitches like this away from home.
This is the third pitch in a row away from home that has been atrocious( 2 in the league and 1 against Milan).
Opposition teams will do whatever they can to gain an advantage and such terrible pitches break up our passing game and make the game a bit more even.
I wouldnt exactly call it cheating as they are the home team and deserve any advantage they can get.
We are a champion team and the greatest of all time.We have to win inspite of the pitch conditions and I am proud of the way we have played on such pitches.Just hope nobody gets injured.

On the players,playing Keita was a horrible idea.
I dont know what game rg and shingami were watching but Cesc Fabregas was the worst player on the pitch.
Its as if he treats the ball like a live grenade and wants to get rid of it as soon as possible.Gave away countless balls,got caught in possession and missed simple passes.Couldnt control the midfield against a 10 man team.
And people thought he was going to replace Xavi :facepalm:

Busquets came on and immediately controlled the midfield.Showed him how its done.
Its the business end of the season and every game is a final.I want Fabregas benched for the rest of the season.

On their penalty,for me it was stonecold and we have nothing to complain about.They could have had another one(Keita) as it was 50-50 but we also deserved one when Thiago was fouled in the box.
Pleased with Alexis as he worked hard and was involved in 2 goals.
Messi was brilliant but again wasteful in front of goal.Good that Pedro got the goal.It will lift his confidence.It was a brilliant goal started off with a supreme piece of skill from Thiago.

Alves injury is a worry.Really leaves us short at the back.

by The Sanchez Sun Apr 08, 2012 7:10 am

Thankyou for stating the obvious. We all knew from the start of the season that Cesc wasn't going to be dominant and control the midfield. He wasn't the worst player on the pitch and he improved immensely throughout the game (especially when Busquests came on) and played a better role as the CAM not CM. Kieta or Thiago was worse and well there denying that we need to be thinking of someone to replace Xavi as its clear that either Thiago or Fabregas cant. Arteta is an option some say, but he will be in his 30's and won't be worth the money.

by The Franchise Sun Apr 08, 2012 10:52 am

Cesc had a better game than Thiago? What was you watching mate lol

by billy_gr Sun Apr 08, 2012 1:05 pm

whatever midfield deficiencies occured be cause of Keita IMO.
And everyone knows I'm not a Keita hater. He just didn't provide the assurance Busquets does.

Anyway, I am pleased from the performance overall.
Once again we saw why Xaviesta is probably the best midfield partnership in modern football.

I am dissapointed from our finishing. the game could have easily be 1-6 or something.

P.S. dat mEssi pass....

by alexjanosik Sun Apr 08, 2012 3:51 pm

paxtonpale wrote:Thankyou for stating the obvious. We all knew from the start of the season that Cesc wasn't going to be dominant and control the midfield. He wasn't the worst player on the pitch and he improved immensely throughout the game (especially when Busquests came on) and played a better role as the CAM not CM. Kieta or Thiago was worse and well there denying that we need to be thinking of someone to replace Xavi as its clear that either Thiago or Fabregas cant. Arteta is an option some say, but he will be in his 30's and won't be worth the money.

He was not better than Thiago.
I was not stating the obvious.Over the past couple of months some have said that he has vastly improved in midfield and could replace Xavi.
Based on the evidence of the last few games I see no improvement whatsoever.
He still loses far too many balls,gets caught in possession and overall looks clueless in midfield.
If he has to play then it should be as a false 10 where he has generally been good.Else he can ride the bench.
And we dont need to buy anyone to replace Xavi.Busquets is the closest replacement there is.

by RealGunner Sun Apr 08, 2012 3:55 pm

alex i was just messing with the fabregas comment Wink

by Yeezus Sun Apr 08, 2012 4:18 pm

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Thiago is going to be the Vidal type midfielder, imo. Pressures quite well, has no problem getting down to the ground, very capable in the offense, keeps calm and succeeds in complicated situations. I'm liking how Pep is trying to implement defensive steel to his game.

Great game by him and the team in general.

by Hamdyman Sun Apr 08, 2012 7:39 pm

Suggestion here, since i noticed after every single Barca match one of the outcomes on these forums is division between the fans over who played good, who did not... etc
people defending Pedro, Alexis and even Seydou (god be with them).

Being a bit "techy ignorant", i was wondering if its possible to add some sort of method/widget thing to get us to vote for each player, the team and coaching staff out of a 20 or so.

the thing you see on other websites, but I'm unaware if its applicable for a forum page or is it too much fuss?..

Would like to see how members around here grade FCB seeing there's a decent Football minded crop here

by free_cat Sun Apr 08, 2012 7:45 pm

Thiago was worse than Cesc? IMO Thiago had a tremendous game. One of our best players. I think Cesc was poor-ish, I only remember a nice chip pass to Messi.

Have to say that Alexis had quite a good match. I liked his game, especially that pass to Messi and a couple of nice dribles.
Nice to see Pedro scoring again with a confident finish, let's hope that helps him find the net again!

by free_cat Sun Apr 08, 2012 7:57 pm

I wonder if Pep will stop using Keita sometime. It's obvious he is not good enough to start for us.

by The Sanchez Mon Apr 09, 2012 12:37 am

Well if he doesn't than he might as well sell him. I find him annyoing when he starts. Most of the time, he plays 'alright' to say the most than has those odd games that he played good. With the youth coming through (talking about JDS) then he may have to step down. @Alex. I just find it annyoing how people think he is a waste of money. There is something that we haven't seen yet from him. it takes time and well hopefully he will prove to be worth what he is. Maybe next season. Again imo, Cesc improved throughout the game especially when Busuqests came in. His natural position is CAM where he played the last few season but we can see he is no Inestia. You can say, he hasn't improved from the past few games. The AC game, he made great link up play with players especially Messi, in which one play should have been a goal. He needs to work on his shooting and well if Pep wants him to succeed Xavi, well than he has to work with his 'controbalility' with the ball.

by free_cat Mon Apr 09, 2012 12:40 am

Next Xavi is Thiago, Cesc should focus on rotate with INiesta and Thiago, but he is far too attacking. He is a Iniesta supersub.

by The Sanchez Mon Apr 09, 2012 12:48 am

I guess though time will tell...

by The Franchise Mon Apr 09, 2012 12:56 am

Please sell Keita and lets use JDS.

Not only is Keita not a DM, JDS has waited patiently and probably could of moved on by now.

I dont see anything other than aerial presence that Keita has over him in that position.

by The Sanchez Mon Apr 09, 2012 1:12 am

Im just worried that if we do play JDS in some games that we won't have the height for winning headers. He is afterall, quite short and well Busquests is lovely to have because of his height and his abilities to win headers.

by The Franchise Mon Apr 09, 2012 1:35 am

Well in many games we have some much control, we dont even give away corners. Milan 1st leg, we didnt concede a single corner.

This weekend, we started without Pique, Abidal and Busquets..and yet, had no issue.

Busquets obviously should start most games, but the odd game here for there would make sense for JDS over Keita.

by The Sanchez Mon Apr 09, 2012 2:09 am

Yeah, well I see no chance of replacing anyone else in the midfield and well playing him at right back is like playing Messi at right back. A shadow or making constant mistakes.

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