Not even Barca are immune to time and tide
So it seems to some, with both Spanish giants dramatically knocked out of the Champions League, Barcelona conceding the title and Pep Guardiola announcing his departure.
It is not the scenario anybody envisaged at the turn of the year, when Barcelona reigned supreme, undisputed world champions after demolishing Santos 4-0, and Guardiola was being credited with creating the best team of all time.
Even 10 days ago, they seemed capable of rising to the challenge and achieving a unique “double double”, not just retaining the Spanish title but their European crown as well. Now, seven points adrift in La Liga and facing Bilbao in the Spanish cup final on May 25, they could even end up with nothing.
Guardiola is not the weakest link, however, and reports of Barcelona’s demise are exaggerated.
They were back in Madrid on Sunday night, men on a mission, and the unfortunate victims were Rayo Vallecano, forever a mattress team as they say in Spain and on this occasion more like a trampoline. The 7-0 win didn’t flatter Barca, although José Pinto, their reserve goalkeeper, had to make a couple of very good saves to keep the clean sheet.
It was a message of defiance, but also faith. They will not change their approach, as manager-to-be Tito Vilanova made clear in his press conference, and you just have to look at the players who are coming through from the B team — Thiago Alcantara, Cristian Tello, Rafinha, Sergi Roberto, Isaac Cuenca — to realise the potential there is for renewal.
It seems likely that tactics will be reviewed however. The difference between triumph and disaster was inches, against both Real Madrid and Chelsea, but Barcelona’s playing style can sap their own players as well the opposition. Endless possession and swarming around their opponents to win the ball back when they lose it works fine when the other team has to run and run to keep up with the ball. It’s not so good when they stay compact and Barcelona have to pass their way through the defensive lines.
Though Guardiola would obviously have preferred to leave on a high, his departure is not a shock. He hinted he needed a break from football a year ago in a conversation with Johan Cruyff. Others have also taken time out with positive results, including Rafa Benitez and José Mourinho, who spent his sabbatical studying and establishing some useful contacts in the Middle East, which could be significant when he decides to move on.
Guardiola has similar links, dating back to his time as a player with Al-Ahli in Qatar. It would not be a surprise to see those links renewed now that Qatar and Abu Dhabi have established such a strong presence in European football.
This past week could have marked a new peak in Mourinho’s career – nobody has even come close to winning the European Cup or Champions League with clubs from three different countries. Instead, he has to content himself with the prospect of winning his fourth different league, which is rare, though not unique, as both Ernst Happel and Giovanni Trapattoni managed it.
Three ‘majors’ – England, Italy and Spain – is a first though, and Mourinho can now be considered the best, or at any rate the most successful, international club manager of all time — just as Alex Ferguson can claim to be the best ever with a single club.
It has been a season of records. Messi and Ronaldo head-to-head in establishing a new goal standard in La Liga, Madrid close to raising the bar even higher in terms of goals and points.
In Italy, almost unnoticed, Juventus have now gone 35 league games unbeaten, breaking the record set by Fabio Capello with Milan. They have done it thanks to an ironclad defence rather than spectacular goalscoring and with a team without stars, apart from Gigi Buffon in goal.
The have also done it by turning to one of their old boys for leadership.
Antonio Conte is a Juventus legend, much like Pep Guardiola at Barcelona and Roberto Di Matteo at Chelsea, but he had only four seasons in management behind him when he took over last summer. Respect was there: what has made the difference, for fans and players alike, is his commitment to the cause. And results.
