Wembley Cup - Barca Results
July 27th 2009 22:44
I know I mentioned I would write a follow-up after the first game, however, I was at the beach and have only now had time to analyze what happened.
The Games
Over the weekend, we continued to see how great Bojan Krkic might be. He scored goals in both games and continues to display the skill necessary to play any of the front line positions for Barca. He continues to score goals and be a solid contributor whenever he is on the pitch, the question is...how much will he play this year. I think his continued development could play a big role in keeping the big 3 (Henry, Ibra, and Messi) healthy by giving them extra days rest.
The result against Tottenham Hotspurs is somewhat disappointing as I was hoping for a torrid pace of play in preseason as we saw last year. However, Barca were playing without six key members of the team for the entire game and 11 youth team players. I think the style of play was important as Barca seemed to control the play even with mostly second team or youth players on the pitch.
The second match vs. Egyptian outfit Al-Ahly saw the Barca we fans have grown accustomed to. A 4-1 drubbing in which Bojan, Messi, and Victor Valdes all displayed their rare abilities reminded me of last year's preseason. Again, once Barca claimed control of the game it was reminiscent of last year's glory and all this without 6 key figures.
Alas, Barca did not get to play the "champions" Celtic and therefore missed out on the inaugural Wembley Cup.
Transfer and Injury Happenings
The good news first, Rafa Marquez is close to full fitness and should be ready for the season. His recovery, along with Gabby Milito's, affords Barca with great depth in the back This allows Puyol to play out wide as needed and give Dani Alves a break here and there.
More good news, Ibra is signed, sealed, and delivered. The bad news is Ibrahimovic has a broken hand. Hopefully he will recover quickly, if not, well good news there is Bojan waiting in the wings. The more I think about this “trade” between Barca and Inter the more I like it. Ibrahimovic seems motivated and his ability to finish cannot be questioned. Eto'o was acting like an immature child and need to move on to pastures new.
The next signing (if there is one)
Pep seemed to be confident that Barca would sign another player prior to next season. Hopefully this player will be a defensive midfielder, as it will be difficult to go the month long stretch of the African Cup of Nations with only one defensive midfielder, in Sergie Busquets, and that is assuming no injuries. Rafa Marquez, has displayed the ability to fill this role before, but it would be foolish to rely on a player recovering from major knee surgery. The options that have been discussed the most are Javy Mascherano and Christian Poulsen. I love Mascherano as a player and think he would be an excellent addition on the field, but he does create a bit of a question as to the future of Yaya Toure should Barca bring him on. Poulsen on the other hand, while also a top-class defensive midfielder, is not quite the big name Mascherano is and in my humble opinion would be a little bit less of a personality in the locker room. Perhaps these are just my perceptions, but I just don't envision a team, that plays Barca's formation, that can have two players of Toure and Mascherano's skill level that doesn't have locker room issues.
It seems to me that Barca need to let someone go in order to bring someone in, there is just so much quality depth that can create locker room chemistry issues.
Chemistry is key, hopefully Barca maintains it.
Also a note that Pep said he plans to use Pedro this season. I saw a lot of Pedro last pre-season and we saw a good but last weekend. He seems to be a very talented young player, the question is where will his playing time come from?
The Games
Over the weekend, we continued to see how great Bojan Krkic might be. He scored goals in both games and continues to display the skill necessary to play any of the front line positions for Barca. He continues to score goals and be a solid contributor whenever he is on the pitch, the question is...how much will he play this year. I think his continued development could play a big role in keeping the big 3 (Henry, Ibra, and Messi) healthy by giving them extra days rest.
The result against Tottenham Hotspurs is somewhat disappointing as I was hoping for a torrid pace of play in preseason as we saw last year. However, Barca were playing without six key members of the team for the entire game and 11 youth team players. I think the style of play was important as Barca seemed to control the play even with mostly second team or youth players on the pitch.
The second match vs. Egyptian outfit Al-Ahly saw the Barca we fans have grown accustomed to. A 4-1 drubbing in which Bojan, Messi, and Victor Valdes all displayed their rare abilities reminded me of last year's preseason. Again, once Barca claimed control of the game it was reminiscent of last year's glory and all this without 6 key figures.
Alas, Barca did not get to play the "champions" Celtic and therefore missed out on the inaugural Wembley Cup.
Transfer and Injury Happenings
The good news first, Rafa Marquez is close to full fitness and should be ready for the season. His recovery, along with Gabby Milito's, affords Barca with great depth in the back This allows Puyol to play out wide as needed and give Dani Alves a break here and there.
More good news, Ibra is signed, sealed, and delivered. The bad news is Ibrahimovic has a broken hand. Hopefully he will recover quickly, if not, well good news there is Bojan waiting in the wings. The more I think about this “trade” between Barca and Inter the more I like it. Ibrahimovic seems motivated and his ability to finish cannot be questioned. Eto'o was acting like an immature child and need to move on to pastures new.
The next signing (if there is one)
Pep seemed to be confident that Barca would sign another player prior to next season. Hopefully this player will be a defensive midfielder, as it will be difficult to go the month long stretch of the African Cup of Nations with only one defensive midfielder, in Sergie Busquets, and that is assuming no injuries. Rafa Marquez, has displayed the ability to fill this role before, but it would be foolish to rely on a player recovering from major knee surgery. The options that have been discussed the most are Javy Mascherano and Christian Poulsen. I love Mascherano as a player and think he would be an excellent addition on the field, but he does create a bit of a question as to the future of Yaya Toure should Barca bring him on. Poulsen on the other hand, while also a top-class defensive midfielder, is not quite the big name Mascherano is and in my humble opinion would be a little bit less of a personality in the locker room. Perhaps these are just my perceptions, but I just don't envision a team, that plays Barca's formation, that can have two players of Toure and Mascherano's skill level that doesn't have locker room issues.
It seems to me that Barca need to let someone go in order to bring someone in, there is just so much quality depth that can create locker room chemistry issues.
Chemistry is key, hopefully Barca maintains it.
Also a note that Pep said he plans to use Pedro this season. I saw a lot of Pedro last pre-season and we saw a good but last weekend. He seems to be a very talented young player, the question is where will his playing time come from?
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