It’s been a couple of days since “El Clásico” ended, and the Barça faithful are still reeling from the heavy blow dealt by our eternal rival right at the Camp Nou. This famously demanding fanbase almost seems to thrive on confrontation. You can already hear voices claiming this project is doomed to failure and wanting to blow everything we've built sky-high. What can you do? It’s one of those endemic flaws of this culer fanbase that's never satisfied with just winning; they always demand absolute perfection.
First, though, let’s take a look at the team. Naturally, the players are shaken after these two defeats against heavy-hitting opponents. Let's not forget that PSG is the reigning champion of Europe, boasting a squad packed to the brim with international players of undisputed quality bought with a bottomless checkbook. That match was a tough defeat that pointed the finger at a few individuals—some more than others—but it made it clear that Barça is still missing something. Call it experience, competitiveness, or whatever you want, but the bottom line is that even though the game was tied in the 80th minute, we conceded two goals that exposed the glaring holes in this team.
Following that defeat, there were two distinct types of reactions. On one side, you had those crying out that once again the team had no defense, complaining that Joao Cancelo doesn't know how to defend, that Balde jogged back through the entire buildup of the final goal... while others insisted we desperately need a left-center-back because Gerard Martín is a converted fullback who proves he's not up to snuff in high-stakes matches. To all of them, I'd say they might have a point, but that doesn't mean we need to write these players off entirely. Remember, Gerard Martín is supposed to be a backup, with both Eric Garcia and Christensen ahead of him—both of whom are currently injured. As for Cancelo, his defensive frailties have always been known, and they seem even more exposed when he plays as a right-back; plus, he was only playing there because both Eric and Koundé are in the infirmary, and the season's breakout star Xavi Espart had to be subbed off after having completely pocketed Kvaratskhelia all game long. You can't demand blowing up an entire project when you're facing PSG with three crucial defensive starters out.
On the other flip side, we had everyone who went into defensive mode and minimized the loss. Many rolled out the excuse that "PSG rested all their starters in their previous match and were fresher," or fell back on "they just have a much deeper squad." One of the ones I heard the most was, "Flick saved Rodri for the Madrid game, and you just can't compete like that." And I'll say the same thing: they're not entirely wrong. It's obvious that PSG, who seem to have infinite money, have such a deep squad that their bench players would be coveted as absolute superstars—let alone their supposed starters! Dembélé, Doué, Kvaratskhelia, and company. Players who could be the marquee franchise player on any other team, and on top of that, they're coached by Luis Enrique, one of the best managers in the world who has been proving it for years. But in my humble fan opinion, brushing things off and refusing to do any self-criticism is a fundamental mistake. Flick always says it with polite words, but he always slips in the parting message: "We have to keep improving." And he isn't wrong by a single millimeter.
And after that defeat, Sunday rolled around and brought us El Clásico, and there I was, squirming in my cautious little bubble, terrified of hearing the chest-thumping bravado of all the pundits, journalists, and other members of the media's culer inner circle who were completely convinced of a Barça victory. I suppose from my own personal experiences, I've never wanted to be the favorite for anything and I constantly run away from that tag when people try to pin it on me, even in my professional life. But it was almost grotesque listening to so many people high on hype, shouting from the rooftops about the guaranteed Barça blowout that was supposedly coming.
I guess all of them were blinded by the team's stats at the start of the league season and didn't stop to think that Madrid had their own weapons. Starting with the more-than-obvious leniency of the referee on duty toward the constant fouls committed by players like Cucurella himself. Moving on to the Mourinho-style tactical blueprint implemented by their coaching staff (because he doesn't cook up that stuff himself, it's his staff) focused on disruption and destroying the flow of the game. And finally, finishing with that sheer luck they always seem to have. It's something that paranormal researchers really ought to study, because what happens with that team is worthy of the Guinness Book of World Records.
It was a total dogfight. An opponent that scored off a rebound following a botched clearance by Gerard Martín—once again singled out—and spent the entire second phase of the game destroying, intimidating, unnerving, and whining. And just when we managed to tie the game back up, following a rookie mistake by Cubarsí, they pulled ahead again to prove that they don't actually need to play football to stick two goals past you. Pedri looked exhausted beyond reason, Rodri couldn't find his rhythm, Gordon couldn't break past his marker down the wing, Fermín couldn't slip through any cracks, and Lamine was getting hacked to pieces with no fouls called while the referee let it slide... simply too many factors stacked against us to win such a complicated match.
But now, it's time to pick ourselves back up.