Doubt begins to gnaw away at Barca
Last month’s first-leg loss was followed by two demoralising defeats in five days to domestic rivals Real Madrid, and a string of Barcelona figures have since been sharing their downbeat feelings in public.
On Monday, president Sandro Rosell admitted the absence of coach Tito Vilanova, still receiving cancer treatment in New York, had led to some psychological issues.
“The experts say that after 30 days of the leader’s absence, there is a drop in performance,” Rosell said.
“It is normal for this to happen. But I think the reaction from outside has been a little exaggerated.”
Rosell was trying to play down the increasing sense of apprehension around the club, but his attempt did not work too well.
The same day, midfielder Andres Iniesta conceded Barca’s players were worried about their form — “We are concerned because we have not been playing well,” Iniesta said — Sergio Busquets added he wished Tito was there too.
“When the boss is not here, everyone misses him,” Busquets said. “The day to day work is more difficult.”
At Tuesday’s post-training press conference, Javier Mascherano discussed how the atmosphere had changed in the last month.
“A few weeks ago it was all like a Disney film,” he said. “Now it is like a haunted house horror story.”
The Argentinian was talking about the reaction of the media, not the players, but the phrase stuck. On Wednesday, Lionel Messi, while opening his own Adidas-sponsored temporary museum in Barcelona city centre, was also singing the blues.
“I am not sad, but I am hurting,” Messi said. “I do not like to lose out on important things, neither does the team.”
By Thursday, Cesc Fabregas was turning some of the pain outwards, towards the supporters who have whistled his performances recently.
“Barca fans are more demanding with me than with my team-mates,” complained Fabregas, a point of view which unsurprisingly lead to further brooding in the local media.
By Friday, stand-in coach Jordi Roura was voicing his exasperation at Barca’s ability to make a drama out of a crisis.
“There is always a tendency to get overly euphoric when we win, and excessively pessimistic when we lose,” Roura said, while calling for everyone — players, fans, and journalists — to give the gloom a break.
On Saturday evening, La Liga’s woefully out of form bottom side Deportivo La Coruña were the visitors at the Camp Nou, a fixture which offered an ideal opportunity to hammer in a few goals. With many presumed starters against Milan rested, including Messi and Iniesta, Alexis Sanchez took his chance to impress by heading Barca’s opener, but David Villa and Fabregas were [again] subdued.
Depor were atrocious, but Barca still needed Messi to enter late on to seal a 2-0 win.
The game also saw evidence of infighting in the stands — with some fans reportedly ejected after unveiling a banner critical of Rosell, whose acrimonious public battle with previous president Joan Laporta is another unhelpful distraction. It was left to Roura to put a positive spin on things.
“This week we have worked very intensely,” he said. “I believe we are feeling good. The players look fine to me. We will do everything humanly possible to go through.”
Turning the tie around on Tuesday is possible, but only if Barca’s players really believe they can do it.
All the recent introspection and doubt suggests they don’t.
CONNECT WITH US TODAY
Be the first to know the latest news and updates
