Barça B problems continue and they’re starting to regress
Everything wasn’t perfect with Barcelona B but at least the team was growing. There was a process they were following since the first round until half-time of its game against Llosetense, and it had progressed slowly, short passes and, sometimes, too erratic, but they played forward. Barça B improved defensively thanks to the centre back pairing of Costa-Tarin and by strengthening it with a fullback like Godswill and a midfielder such as Ros or Gumbau. The progress when it came to defending was good, different from last season which was costing the team nearly a goal per game,, but they progressively learned how to defend them better. With the ball, even if they were a bit irregular, positives could be seen and Barça B players were gaining confidence and the feeling they were finding themselves in the new setup. Until half-time of that match, the big question was the goal drought, even with all of their effort, it was still insufficient. None of Gerard Lopez efforts in order to get the ball inside the net were successful. Neither putting forward and freeing Grimaldo, nor putting more players upfront, nor placing Samper as an interior, nor the introduction of a second fullback to attack on the right wing. Nothing. And without goal, there was no answer to the defeats and heavy blows, like what happened when they played with the last placed team in their group. After that, Barcelona B started to regress.
The confidence and the desire seem to have declined, Barça B are looking nervous, filled with doubts, insipid. On Sunday, against Atletic Baleares, the involution looked obvious by facing an opponent that performed with with clear ideas and that didn’t sit deep. The centre back pairing, with Quintilla replacing Costa, struggled to give simple passes, despite Samper return on midfield. Maybe to make the team or the players safer, Gerard Lopez decided to give Samper some freedom and setup Gumbau with Kaptoum as interior midfielders. He also gave some continuity to Palencia, unfortunate protagonist of the first goal during when he was on the wing instead of the midfield. All these measures were taken to make the midfielders’ work easier but Gerard López didn’t manage to achieve that. It is obvious that the construction of the plays was more difficult than expected, but it at least reached the final third of the pitch, the team was missing control when in possession. Showing some sign of desperation after getting close to the opponent’s box and the build up was rash and made in a straight line without the forward’s controlling it or even returning passes, just seeking the goal. But since the season begun it hasn’t been easy to score goals, without them and with a limited team, it’s difficult to change the dynamics of the performances and find quick solutions.
· En zona peligrosa
Translator: Jérémy Veron
