Sevilla - Barcelona "Match Review"

Both teams have shared the points and the performance. After Sevila being the better part in the first half, Barcelona could pull the game to their side in the second half, they even had real chances to come back with the three points.

After Messi trying his luck from distance, Barca were completely away from the game, when Sevilla took the game forword showing their will to score, with many chances were mostly denied by V.Valdes, finally in the 34th minutes they were able to put themselves one goal ahead after very good play started from Alaves and finished by Capel who was also the goal scorer in the cup game. Barca reaction didn’t seem coming, the same game style continued leading to the half time.

Marquez and Ronaldinho were the two substitutions, they replaced each of Edmilson and Thuram. The center line now shaped by Iniesta, Xavi and Ronaldinho, leaving each of Gio, Henry and Messi in the front line. Barcelona were finally capable to control the ball the way they should, while Sevilla they seem just to counter attack the visitors. Gudjohnsen replaced Henry who had physical problem on his left leg obvioulsy caused him leaving the field. The main chances were created by Xavi who sent the ball from distance twice but his ball was not directed to the goal. In the 75th minutes, Messi put Xavi face to face with Palop, who finally gave Barca the equaliser. Sevilla problems continued after being left with ten men, when Keita committed a foual against Messi on the edge of the penelty area causing him the second yellow. Barceona appeared more dominant and pushing for the winning goal, but the result repeated itself again to remain 1-1 draw.

Frank didn’t have many choices to make his start line, nine players were absent from the first squad, he even called some extra players from Barca B. It was announced before the match that Marquez and Ronaldinho are not fit for 90 minutes. The problem was obvious in the center line with Edmilson poor appearance, he was the weakest link causing lack of ball control giving Sevilla more space to push against Barca defense.

All in all, 1-1 wasn’t bad result for the visitors under these conditions, they are five points behind Real Madrid, who are willing to make the gap to eight points tonight against Valladolid.

Barcelona - Osasuna “Match Review”

Barcelona came to the match willing to close the gap at the top of the table after Real Madrid failure against Almeria. Thanks to Xavi who finally gave the fans what they have come for before three minutes from the finall whistle. In the other side Osasuna didn’t give any sign that they wanted to win the game.

Barca went out from the beginning for the opening goal, they were able to reach Ricardo in many occasions, and even passing him when Iniesta chipped the ball over him but Osasuna defender cleared it into a corner kick. The attacking football was continuously done by Barcelona, they tried hard to push forword but the result remained the unchanged.

After the break, Barcelona kept on dominating the game, the will for an opening goal was no more the players desire, the only desire for them became a winning goal, but still Osasuna wall couldn’t fall apart. Henry and Messi were obviously exhausted after playing the last game in the spanish cup, both of them left the field giving the way to Giovani Dos Santos and Ronaldinho. Barcelona not scoring didn’t please the fan, in the same time Osasuna was keeping the same defending style, moreover they were into wasting time and complaning to the referee. The last substitution came on the 81th minte when Xavi replaced Deco. On the 87th minute, after good work from Giovani, he set the ball for Iniesta who tried his luck but his ball was reflected by Osasuna defense, then finding Xavi who gave Barca the winning goal to assure the three points.

In general, Barcelona played their attacking football style. One thing remains unsolved for Frank which is the lack of goals, he already mentioned this fact to the media asking his players for more goals, adding that being the side who deserve to win doesn’t bring the three points. In the other hand side, Barcelona defense still shows quality in keeping their goal clean giving them the title of the best defense line in La Liga this season, thanks to the additional services provided by Milito and Abidal.

Barcelona - Racing "Match Review"

With only one goal, Henry gave Barcelona one of the hardest three points this season. Even if the game was played at Nou Camp, but things were not going easy for the home side. Racing came to visit not only to defense, but they were well organised from all the lines, starting from solid defense line and beside, they were able to reach Valdes in many ocassion in the second haf.

The fact that Barca were expecting some difficulities from the visitor, Frank started the game with alittle bit risk card as his start line-up didn’t include Defensive Midfielder, which is under Yaya absent, it was filled by Marquez, but Frank knows the hardest job for his team is to score an early goal. By starting with Deco, Iniesta and Gudjohnsen, the team would have better control on the ball, willing to push the ball more forword hoping for an opening goal. Some how they managed to make it 1-0, after a gift from Racing defense, T.Henry makes them pay in the 30th minute. Things didn’t change much leading up to half time.

After the break, Racing were not giving any sign that the team and their defense is ready to collapse, more over they were brave put the pressure on Barcelona players. Here comes the time for Frank to do something. They have scored, they are not able to show a real chance to score another one, Racing is coming over and over, time to put thing back to normal. Frank pulls back Gudjohnsen, and Marquez comes in instead, now they have triangle in the center starting from Marques who has defensive ability. Gudjohnsen wasn’t the weakest link in the middle line, but Frank wouldn’t risk by taking out Iniesta, and beside he would prefer keeping Deco who comes back from an injury to have him in form for the rest of the league. Another player came back from injury, in fact this was the happiest moment for the fan when Messi entered the filed replacing Giovani, with less than half of an hour for Messi to play, he still seems the key man for Barcelona. Even with messi arrive to the field, the score remained unchanged, which brings to the dutch coach the last substitution by pushing Abidal instead of Sylvinho who was more in attacking duty than keeping his left side safe.

To conclude, even with Barca not playing very good football, their defense remain the best defense in the league, thanks to Poyol and Milito, especially the last one who was the key man for Barca last wall. With this three point Barca still seven points behind Real Madrid the leader.

Barcelona - R.Murica "Match Review"

With 4 goals came from Gudjohnsen, Bojan, and Eto in 2 occasion, Barca have beaten Murcia without producing good football in the first half but with amazing football in the second half. Without him scoring T.Henry put his name as the player of the match, he was the most effective player from the left side, he was able to assist 2 of the golas in the same way.

From the other side Murcia was solid enough in the first half to keep his net clean, they tried also to make some counter attack but without any real chance. The only big chance they got was from Baiano in the second half when he faced Valdes, it was possible to be 1-1 but Baiano was denied by Barca Goalkeeper. Beside this Murcia in the second half was completely off the game.

Away from the result, Barca showed very good football, the whole team was on top, but still with Henry and such a performance, he gave the fans what they were waiting for since he arrived at Nou Camp, his physical fit was impressive while he didn’t have any problem passing through Murica defense. Marquez was also another key player, he continoue being in good shape that he appeared in the last few weeks. He played in the center line behind Gudjohnsen and Xavi, but having him there didn’t stop him from going back to cut most of the long balls from Murica players.

Tacticly Frank entered the game with the same format, 4-3-3 was applied very well by covering almost the whole filed, with being carefull in going to attack by keeping each of Zambrotta and Sylvinho not exagerating in going to suppport the front line.

Very good performance and big result, this comes before facing Sevilla in the middle of this week.

Valenica - Barcelona "Match Review"

It seems that Barcelona finally got to win full three points away from home, even if this time the oponent was Valencia who struggled the whole season inside and outside Spain.

After the kick-off, Barcelona was the better side, they took control of the ball not giving Valencia any chance to make any answer. Eto was the Barcelona’s key player, it was somehow clear that he will score for Barca. This comes true on the 12th minute, when Messi put him inside the area, he passed through two defenders and drove the ball into the top corner of the net. The second goal came after 26 minutes by the same player after very good team work, again, Messi put Eto in the area, Eto with one hit left Canizares with frozen legs. Every thing seemed to be well for Barca. The first half for Barca was supposed to be perfect but yet, Messi picked up an injury before 3 minutes from the break, putting him away from the field and away from El Classico next week.

The second half was more or less on the same rhythm, with Barcelona the dominant side and Valencia the broken side. With Barca having comfortable lead, things went so well for them. Gio was the main character with his try also when he put Gudjohnsen with clear net making it 0-3. Barcelona enjoyed the rest of the match while Valenica looked rarley willing to cause any danger.

From another side, it is hard to say who was the man of the match when as long sa we saw all the players giving all they could for the team. But the man who should be mentioned is Gudjohnsen, who after the failure from last year, we could see him now in new position giving good performance completely different from the last season. Of course we give also the credits to Frank who is the best man that can take the best from his players.

Great Victory came on the right time for Barca, with high confidence they will be able to face Real Madrid even without Messi. Barca has lotS of solutions for this, and with many players on the top of their performance, Frank will find himself in a position where he has to choose from the whole squad just eleven men. Another challenge will be waiting for the Dutch Coach next week.

Barcelona - Deportivo "Match Review"

After an early shock from the visitors, Barcelona found it so hard to get back into the game, obviously because of the pressure that have been done by Deportivo de La Coruna during the first half. Barcelona wasn’t seen as the unbeaten team at home for almost 30 minutes, but after all they got to save the match with full three points. Coloccini appeared the main character in Deportivo defense, but in general the whole defense line was impressive.

In the 2nd minute, Cristian surprised Valdes with a shot from 25 metres. This was bad news for Barcelona players, who took them almost the first half to pass over the goal surprise. Five minutes before the 1st half final whisle, Iniesta who appeared like usual with great shape wins a penelty after good run from the left side. Ronaldinho who started the match from the beginning after three matches starting on the bench, puts the ball nicely into the net giving Barca the full confidence to start the 2nd half as the dominant side.

As it was expected, Barcelona took the control of the match in the 2nd half, it was clear the will for the second goal. Deco who was away for more than 1 month, was Frank’s risk card in the center to give Barca more speed in pushing the ball forward. Xavi was the man who assured the three points, after crossed ball by Puyol stoped by Muna to find Xavi with a clear net who released the pressure by making it 2-1 for Barca. The tries for the third goal were available but the result remained unchanged, and Barca remained as well unbeaten at home.

The good news for Barcelona wasn’t just the victory, Eto who was enjured for more than 2 months got to enter the field from the start, the way he appeared, was good sign for Frank who had problems with lots of enjured players. This great news comes before 2 weeks from facing Real madrid.

The remarkable point was Sylvinho who replaced Abidal for healthy reason, his attacking mentality to support the front line, specificly from the left side was good option to give Ronaldinho enough space to play better football. Meanwhile Milito was the responsible man for the gap that was left behind Sylvinho, it was clear that he was standing more on the left side in case of any counter attack from the visitors.

Espanyol - Barcelona "Match Review"

After great start by Barca which reminds us with the last game against Lyon, Espanyol reaction was late one half, especially in the first 20 minutes from the second half. After the game was opened, there were lots of chances for both sides to change the final result.

In the first half, after six minutes, Messi makes successful run breaking through Espanyol defense passing the ball to Iniesta who scored the first goal. This goal put Barca in control, the players missed easly in many occasions the chance to make it at least 2-0, propably the ball that was denied by the post twice was the biggest opportunity for the visitors.

After the break, Espanyol took off the control from Barca, and they forced Barcelona players to remain mostly in their half. Corominas on the 68th minute from his first touch, he scored his first goal in the season making it 1-1. The game was on fire in the last fifteen minutes, fortunatly we could see very nice football from both teams.

In general, Barcelona gave very good show performance, all the players appeared the way the fan expected them to be. But the player who was on top of his performance was Messi. Even Frank after the end of the match mentioned how impressed he was by the way Messi controled the ball, "The way he controls the ball is incredible, he is spectacular," Frank said.

The only thing to be said about Barca tactic was în the second half. We saw exactely the opposite of what was in the first half, the defense line was mainly standing almost behind the center line with few meters, which gives Barcelona the ability to control the field with giving no chance for Espanyol to catch the ball and to cause any damage. In the second half, after the way that Espanyol entered the field, Barcelona renounced on the middle area, because Espanyol was pushing them back. Barcelona was focused on not receiving any surprise, neglecting the fact that by dominating the match they could avoid Espanyol scoring.


    1st Half


    2nd Half

Espanyol vs Barcelona "Match Preview"

Without Henry, Eto, Deco, Thuram, Edmilson, Oleguer, Giovani and Sylvinho, Frank Rijkaard calls up each of Marc Crosas, Alberto Botia and Victor Sanchez to join the list facing Espanyol this Saturday. This will make the mission harder for Barcelona players while they are willing to prove themself away from the Nou Camp after successful night in the Champions league.

The start line up will not be different from the one played against Lyon, the only thing is that we might see Ronaldinho starting the match. But beside this, Frank Rijkaard will apply the same strategy.

Taking into account the history of both teams, Barcelona has better chance to win the game. But Espanyol has never been the easy opponent in the derby. Last year as we all remember Espanyol beat Barca 3-1.

Lyon 2 - 2 Barca "Match Review"

With fantastic Goal, Barca started the match very nicely after very well counter attack started from Messi then to Bojan and finished by Iniesta. Four minutes later from freekick Lyon brings the game again to the start point. In the secomd half from a penalty kick, Messi makes it 2-1 for Barca after he himslef had been brough down in the Box. Almost twenty minutes later Juninho from a penalty kick committed by Abidal, the home side equalises the game.

Xavi and Toure were the main characters in Barcelona performance, Toure appeared the way he did in the last weeks, being successful in cutting the balls from the opponent giving the freedom to Xavi to play more in the front line. The defense line didn't have so many problem, with Puyol and Milito, both were focused quit well. The only gap was coming from the right side, with Zambrotta mistakes, Frank found himself forced to replace him with Marquez, who stands next to Milito, moving Puyol to the right side. The only negative point that came from Abidal was the penalty kick in the second half, but in general his left side was not an easy path for Lyon. Bojan didn't get to touch the ball so often, but he was the main reason for the two goals that gave Barcelona the qualifying and the 1st place with 11 points.

Barca start line up didn't include Ronaldinho and Henry. Iniesta played in the left side while Bojan was in the front line as striker. Gudjohnsen took Iniesta place in the middle. But even so Barca didn't change 4-3-3 tactic.

No new tactics to be mentioned, the same way of players movment depending like usual on the wings from both side. One point was missed from Barca, shots from outside the area was not applied, except one in the first half was well done by Yaya, was saved by vercoutre. The team in general was fast enough but in the other hand side Lyon still is not Lyon last year.

Barcelona plays away in Champions League

Away from the Spanish league, Barcelona play away from home, but this time against Lyon. The French team is still far from the team that appeared last years, even if in the last weeks with better results they got to show good performance.

Everybody knows the difficulties Barca had in La Liga when they were playing away from the Nou Camp. This Game for Barca is a matter of solving the problem with playing away more than winning the three points. Especially that they need psychological preparation for the game against Espanyol.

Generally speaking, the media started talking about tactics change. From the other hand side, we all know Frank and 4-3-3 start line format. The same attack mentality will be applied, and beside the players will be asked for more effort.

Barcelona - Recreativo "Match Review"

The match was obviously between two teams who had different goals, Barcelona willing to score early to catch the match as soon as possible, Recreativo players were just kept focusing in keeping their goal empty.

First half was completely dominated by Barcelona. We could rarely see Recreativo having the ball. The main problem, that however, remained unsolved for Barca was in the Box area. With too many defenders it was hard for Henry to make any run. Messi hoped with presonal effort to open the score but he didn't get it right. While XAVI was moving forward in some occasions, he was also one of the reasons of Barcelona domination tonight. Yaya Toure could keep the balance between the lines, he was able to delay Recartivo attacks during the match. Barcelona players with too small spaces was forced to end the first half with no goals.

In the second half Messi made great run but his ball was just abit far from the right post. Barcelona was not able to use any of the corner kicks untill Milito after 64 minutes scored his first goal from corner kick was taken by Xavi. From here the match took another curve. The goal was just enough to free Barcelona players and we could see Henry moving better with more spaces. After Bojan replaced Gudjohnsen, Iniesta moved to his normal position where he could find more spaces. Three minutes after the first goal Henry received long ball from Xavi delivering it to Bojan who controled it nicely and put it in the goal making it 2-0 for the host. Barcelona after that took off the pressure and it was clear that they gaind the 3 points. In the last 10 minutes Messi won a penalty and he was able to score the 8th goal this season that he deserved, Before the final whistle Barcelona had some chances to make the score bigger but 3-0 was the final result.

From my point of view Barcelona's problem tonight was “moving without the ball”, this what made it easier for Recreativo to cut the balls especially in the first half. This also happens when Barca plays away, like Frank said "he wants more effort from the players".

Pushing Bojan was Good option for Frank, the player wants to fight for a place and he moved nicely all the time, he still has to work much more but tonight he really got to show good performance. Barca fan were happy to see him scorring at Nou Camp.

The defense was stable for Barca tonight, Puyol, Milito and Marguez had no problem in stopping Recreativo from scoring. Abidal was standing well with the defense line, but he still has to improve when he moves to the front line, same thing with Zambrotta, especially when they play against team like Recreativo.