LIGA – Author of a remarkable entry against Bilbao (1-0), Riqui Puig perhaps embodies the solution to the evils of a Barça who has chosen to turn abroad rather than relying on his center training. The increasingly stereotypical game of the Barcelona institution reflects the loss of this identity which has been so strong in the past. But getting back to basics is a risky challenge.
He didn’t score. But it is him that we are talking about the most in Catalonia in recent hours. He is Riqui Puig. His entry into play against Wednesday at Athletic Bilbao transformed the face of Barça. Before, the Barcelona game did not look like much. Slow, unable to change rhythm, uninspired and almost anxious not to take the slightest risk, Quique Setien’s training remained completely harmless. Afterwards, she finally found movement and shifts under the impetus of her talented midfielder. This radical change is a symbol. Because Riqui Puig comes out of the Masia.
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Barça does not lack talent in the midfield, however. With Sergio Busquets, Frenkie de Jong, Arturo Vidal, Ivan Rakitic and Arthur, she has internationally confirmed internationals in this sector of play. However, it is the one where the shoe pinches. Because Barcelona displays all the trouble in the world to produce games. It locks itself in stereotypical patterns, far too easily readable for the opponent. And as often, not to say always, the Catalan club must rely on Lionel Messi to find creativity and put the opponent in danger.
The void left by Xavi and Iniesta
This is not new. In reality, this impression has endured for several seasons. The departures of Xavi and Andres Iniesta obviously affected the Barcelona community severely. Already because the two Spaniards were certainly the best in the world at their post. Also because they embodied blaugrana DNA better than anyone after having inherited all of its characteristics at the Masia school. This game science, this sense of movement and this ability to make the pass at just the right time that made the Barcelona collective irresistible. Times have changed.
We do not come out of Xavi or Iniesta by turns. They come from an exceptional generation. To compensate for their departures, the Catalan leaders have turned to the international. In the middle as in the other sectors of the game. They bet, sometimes very large sums, on players from elsewhere. Stars who have never managed to reach their best performance level in the blaugrana tunic. It is not really their talent that is called into question. But rather their ability to integrate into a game philosophy that is completely foreign to them at the start.
Its strength of yesterday, its weakness of today
The policies of the Barcelona leaders have shown their limits for a long time. It does not prevent the reigning Spanish champion from having results. But they mainly depend on Messi. The older the Argentinian gets, the more he gives the impression of hiding the misery of the Barcelona collective. This already sums up the concern that the future of the club may cause in its current trajectory. Messi remains above the rest but he is not eternal. But it mostly reflects the ills of a club whose quality of collective play has become a weakness, when it was its main force in its most glorious hours.
The Barça management has seen this phenomenon. During the exceptional season of 2009, Josep Guardiola’s team had grabbed all the titles with a majority of players trained at the club in their starting lineup. You could see it on the ground. The “tiki taka” made all the opponents of the Catalan club mad. He also posted his limits in 2013, when the infernal machine of Bayern Munich came to defeat the Barcelona team in the Champions League. Barcelona wanted to correct the situation. And the coronation of 2015 in the Champions League under the direction of Luis Enrique partially validated his choices, with a game a little more direct and vertical. But looking back, it looks more like a lure.
A risky challenge
Since then, Barça has been between two chairs. Between collective possession and individual lightning strikes, he made no choice. Above all, he does not manage to make these two assets coexist which he inherently possesses. Is a homecoming the solution? The Barcelona leaders never wanted to risk it. Riqui Puig is the symbol. Beyond its precious qualities for the Catalan midfield, it leaves the Masia and conveys this identity of play so appreciated by the aficionados of Barcelona. Despite this, he has only had 75 minutes of La Liga play time this season. The talent is there, it’s obvious. The playing time he needs to progress is not, it is also obvious.
Riqui Puig has his faults. He was accused of being intermittent or of not being sufficiently violent in the workplace. He has all the room for improvement that a 20-year-old player has with his talent. Guardiola had the same type of players. Despite the imperative of the result, he did not miss the chance to advance them. Barcelona has gradually abandoned this challenge. But at a time when the Barcelona game seems more sclerotic than ever, it would probably be time to try it to give yourself the chance for a revival.
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