It's two consecutive losses for Barcelona now. After the humbling experience in the hands of PSG midweek, they appeared in La Liga expecting to make amends, only for Seville to pile more misery on them. It finished a whooping 4–1 victory for Sevilla.
🗣️ Matías Almeyda (Sevilla coach):
— “I've been studying Barcelona for years!”
— “I’ve done a comprehensive study— Teams that simply sit back and wait against them lose 98% of the time. The teams that cause them problems are the ones that dare a bit more.”
The above by Almeyda is on one hand, on the other hand is the most popular phrase now– Barcelona's high-line.
THE HIGH-LINE
It's no more news that Mr. Hansi Flick resumed as Barcelona's coach, with a high-line kind of game, meaning his defence line is pushed high up the pitch. The goal is to together with intense pressing, squeeze the opposition into submission.
Yet it seems not to work everytime and Flick has remained adamant, never shifting from his high-line ethos one bit. Too rigid people now call him.
These are my reservations about Flick's high-line system:
1] It's a style that is not new to football, so top coaches have it's antidote. How do you win the biggest trophies when you will have to face these top coaches and teams?
Ok, if you must use the system, then be ready to coach your team to play disciplined intense high-pressing football. Also be sure that you can do it when your best players are not there. Because they seem to be faulted, mostly when their best players are out.
By the middle of the 1st half against PSG midweek, surprisingly, Barca's pressing had reduced. Gaps were opening, but PSG couldn't punish them well enough. You can't allow that drop Barca!I have told Barca faithfuls even last season that, it's not just about the high-line, it's the tools used to prosecute it. I have never been confident with the pace and sharpness of Barca's defence. Against Bayern last season, Barca folks were busy celebrating victory, but I was showing them how easy it was to penetrate there defence-line. It's just that Bayern forward players goofed.
Bayern had a beautiful defender in the Asian,Min, last season, but for a high-line, he was too slow. Today the Asian is on the bench and Bayern bougbt, Ta, who has a better recovery speed. It's now difficult to break Bayern unlike last season.
Anyways, I wasn't worried on the weakness I saw in Kompany's defence last season, he was a defender, I knew he'll fix it.Rigidity is if you have a bench like Arsenal’s. Barca clearly doesn't have that, so what's the rigidity about?!
CONCLUDE
I advice, reduce the high-line in some games when your choice players are out injured.
Also even when choice players are fit, consider altering the high-line when you play truly big teams.
The high-line pattern of football is no rocket-science in football, the answer to it is in the hands of big coaches. Flick should respect those coaches, by being adaptable.
I wish him well.
Thanks for reading.