Fixing Barcelona’s Defense
Yes I talk about Barca a lot and rightfully so because there’s a lot to fix.
While people have been talking all about Ferran Torres and Barca’s attack, in my opinion Barca’s attack is just in need of confidence and a decent vein of form and they’ll produce for years to come.
Barca have big problems they are yet to solve. Gaps they are yet to plug.
In defense since the since the start of the 19/20 season, Barcelona have been horrendous. Today I take a look at how they can improve both structurally and qualitatively.
1. STRUCTURE.
Defensive structure left Barcelona with Luis Enrique. Yes Barca’s defense was good in Valverde’s first two seasons but it had structural shortcomings. Shortcomings that Liverpool,Roma and Valencia exploited to the fullest.
Of course every structure can be exploited. Even Enrique’s Barca was not immune to the odd counterattack. However Valverde,Setien and Koeman piled up structural problems as the quality of the defense reduced. Now Xavi has to improve both factors.
You see, Barca are meant to keep a high line. This allows for them to dominate the ball as is their target. However it comes with a shortcoming, when you lose the ball you’re susceptible to a ball in behind.
To counter this, Barcelona used to employ a counter press that worked even against the strongest of Real Madrid sides. Real Madrid being history’s most successful counterattacking team.(yes they have more trophies than any English or Italian side.)
However, Barcelona’s pressing in the recent pass has been lethargic and unstructured. While Barca’s midfielders are good pressers and active ones at that, the Barca backline would stay deeper at times.
What does this mean? There’s a sea of unexploited space between the midfield and the defense for the opposition to exploit during their counterattack.
An ineffective press and the failure to compact space allows for gaps that any team with a sensible attack can and will exploit.
The next factor is the use of the fullbacks. They push up too much. This is to offer width which is nice but it leaves a massive gap that Barca’s midfield is not suited to cover.
This might change under Xavi who values width being provided by the wingers rather than the fullbacks however we are yet to see.
2. QUALITY
Here’s where all hell breaks lose. In 18/19 Barca had Pique performing to a decent level, Lenglet had started out well, Alba was still a bit of his former self and Semedo/Roberto were not as calamitous. Ter Stegen was the world’s best keeper after Alisson and Busquets was just super.
Of course all this would change in 19/20. Ter Stegen would slow down slightly. Semedo/Roberto became calamitous though we can’t really blame them. Pique and Alba began showing their age and amidst all their chaos Lenglet slowly began to lose himself.
In 20/21 however things got worse. Ter Stegen came back from surgery as a shell of his former self. Pique had effectively reached retirement quality even though he did show quality in part. Roberto was just a freeway for opponents. Alba became one of the world’s most effective attackers forgetting his old job.
Lenglet became worse amidst all the chaos and we can’t really blame him though he was clumsy. Umtiti? He won the World Cup and retired.
Dest,Araujo and Mingueza did well in part but as a young defender when you’re taken to a side with no structure there’s only so much you can do. Especially considering someone like Dest was entirely new to the team.
Garcia joined to suffer the same fate as his fellow young ins and eventually Koeman was booted and replaced with Xavi who is struggling but to some extent succeeding in steadying the ship.
Lenglet and Umtiti are both likely to leave thankfully and that leaves space for young Mika Marmol.
Marmol may not be physically as dominant as Lenglet and Umtiti but he’s very similar to Eric. Short but intelligent and technically gifted. An elegant defender capable of reaching the world’s highest stage. So good on the ball you won’t even believe it’s a center back.
Araujo needs to improve on the ball, however he’s so good at cutting out passes and crosses and in duels. He’s like Puyol only tall and Uruguayan. That might seem blasphemous but the talent is there.
Dest is not quite Alves. His delivery could improve however the potential is great. It saddens me that there’s been talk of his sale. Dest is small however he has this thing where if he’s at his best he can bully any attacker in the world.
He’s fast so even if you beat him he’ll get back to you and he’s used to constantly shifting his body weight and he can read movements well. Dest is also an exemplary dribbler with loads of technical ability. He can influence attacks like a winger but from fullback. If he improves his judgement and positioning Barcelona have a legendary right back on their hands.
Balde is also similar to Dest but from the left. The benefit of Balde is that he’s strong and has a better delivery. He’s like Alba only with loads more defensive ability and he’s much better at one on ones.
However even with all that good talk. That’s 5 defenders. Barcelona need 8. For one, they need a right back to backup Dest. To push Dest to improve himself because Dest already showed at Ajax that he’s ready for the highest level.
In the event Dest leaves, Barca will need two right backs. There’s Alves but he’s well 38.
At center back, there’s an issue. Pique’s organization and leadership is missed. Barca need a defender who will have a Van Dijk/Dias/Koulibaly/Laporte type effect. When Garcia first broke out at City he looked like he was going to the top. Part of the reason for this was the presence of Laporte next to him.
An experienced,commanding figure at the back that will effectively raise the quality of his teammates. Barca had been linked with Laporte but considering how this season has started I don’t see that happening.
There’s De Ligt. I have spoken of Barca signing him however the price tag and wages are a massive problem. So Barca need cheaper alternatives.
Skriniar would be nice. However he cannot offer the same longevity as De Ligt. Lisandro Martinez in theory is nice but he can’t be expected to have the same effect. Effectively it’s De Ligt or nothing for Barca and that’s not confidence inducing.
Then there’s left back. Alba needs to be replaced. At 33 he’s not worth keeping. Offensively he’s still among the world’s best. However it’s in defense where his services are needed most and he can’t provide.
A solid singing like Gaya or Grimaldo however could do the trick as well as prepare the seat for Balde’s rise into the first team. An underrated option that many have also not looked into is Gladbach’s Ramy Bensebaini.
This changes will and have to be made. Barca are in desperate need of leadership and consistency at the back. With Gaya,De Ligt,a competitor for Ter Stegen and a backup for Dest,Barca are good to go.
With Garcia,Araujo and Marmol bound to improve there’s no reason to believe Barca won’t have 8 world class defenders in future.
Alba and Pique need to be eased out. It’s do or die time for Ter Stegen and Roberto just has no hope at this point.
As always if you liked the article, clap and follow. Make your thoughts felt in the comments and follow me on twitter here.
