Barcelona cannot continue making the same mistakes over and over again
Barcelona were unable to hold on to their lead against Granada and ended up drawing thanks to a late goal by Antonio Puertas.
For Xavi Hernandez, it was yet another reminder of how much work he has to do to turn things around as it was yet another example of the Catalan side unable to handle any bit of adversity and floundering late in the game.
It was far too common under Ronald Koeman, it happened against Celta Vigo under Sergi Barjuan and it’s happened again under Xavi.
The manager was very critical of his team in his post match press conference and attributed the result was more on what his team failed to do than what Granada did.
"“It’s a shame but it’s down to our own mistakes,” Xavi said. “It’s a lack of experience. The red card weakens us, but we’ve lost because of errors.“We’ve dropped two hugely important points. It’s down to us, not the opposition. We lost silly balls. The second half was there to be controlled. We can’t go home happy after that. We’re angry. We must be self-critical.”Source: ESPN"
For one reason or another, Barcelona always look sluggish coming out of the dressing room for the second half. Granada were completely on top of the Blaugrana for the opening 10 minutes of the second half before Luuk de Jong bagged the opener.
But again, the Catalans seemed to take their foot off the gas and were sloppy in their passes and wasteful on the rare occasion they managed to attack on the counter.
"“After the goal, which is the most difficult thing, it’s the same story as against Osasuna [when Barca drew 2-2],” Xavi added.“We didn’t know how to control the game. We started dropping back when we had to kill the game off. We must create more to win. We’ve made mistakes. If we want to grow, it has to be now.”Source: ESPN"
Anyone following Barcelona at all this season has seen this before. Xavi mentioned the draw against Osasuna but against Celta Vigo, they were up 3-0 coming out of halftime only to see Iago Aspas score an equalizer in the final moments of the game.
Barcelona’s inability to control a game or kill the game off has cost them quite a number of points this season and it’s one of the reasons they find themselves in sixth place and with no realistic shot at the league title.
Gavi getting sent off didn’t help matters but it was a result of Barcelona and their lack of control. In the lead up to his foul, they misplaced a couple of passes trying to play the ball out which forced the midfielder in making a sliding tackle to try to cut out any danger.
Sergio Busquets: "After the goal we should have had more of the ball, move it from side to side, we did not have to finish the plays so quickly. With the red card it cost us more, it has been a shame."
— barcacentre (@barcacentre) January 8, 2022
Xavi blaming his team’s lack of experience is telling considering it’s been the veterans who seem to lose their heads when something goes against them. Gerard Pique was all over the place after the red card and played a part in Granada’s equalizer. Jordi Alba, another veteran, fared no better.
Getting some of the injured players back should help Xavi in his attempt to shape the club in his image. But there are going to be plenty of growing pains along the way. However, it’s no less concerning that the same mistakes being made at the start of the season are continuing to rear their heads.