Midway
through the first half of Barcelona's game against Sevilla earlier this
month, Neymar hit a glorious free-kick that cannoned off a post and hit
the goalkeeper's back before rolling slowly all the way along the
goal-line. The ball was scrambled away as Luis Suarez tried to turn it
in.
It summed up the
Catalans' afternoon. Several times Suarez uncharacteristically fluffed
his lines; they hit the woodwork three times. But Sevilla grew into the
game and emerged 2-1 winners, inflicting Barca's second La Liga defeat
of the still-young season.
So is there a crisis at the
Camp Nou? Much too early to say that, but there is certainly an injury
crisis. And one of those out is the talismanic Lionel Messi, who is out
until late November with a knee injury.
One
exiled Barcelona fan watching the game in Cordoba raised his eyes to
the heavens as another chance against Sevilla went begging and said,
"The trouble is, when we have no Messi other teams can play normal
football."
Or as Spanish sports journal Marca put it: "No Messi, no dominance."
There was evidence of that both against Bayer Leverkusen in the recent Champions' League game and against Sevilla.
Barca's
opponents could be more expansive, worry less about the usual front
three of Neymar, Suarez and Messi. Leverkusen certainly took the game to
Barca in the Nou Camp, and led for much of the match.
Sevilla
had won just once in their opening six games, but pressed forward with
growing confidence as the game went on. Who would dare commit men
forward while the deadly trio of Barcelona's forward line lurk around
the half-way line?
Barca's next La Liga game is
on October 17th against Rayo Vallecano, whose Luis Farina recently said
on the club's website: "It's true Messi makes a big difference and if
he's not there it will help us a little bit."
Messi, who made his La Liga debut on October 16 2004 in the Catalan derby against Espanyol, brings extraordinary versatility to coach Luis Enrique's squad.
Beyond
his goal-scoring prowess, he can drift in from the right and drop deep.
He can drive at defences, play and receive passes in tiny spaces around
the edge of the penalty area. He also has a unique ability to change
the angle of attack, with long-range passes that make his next move
impossible to predict.
At the recent Aspire4Sports congress in Berlin, former Barcelona and Holland icon Johan Cruyff contrasted Messi to Ronaldo.
Of
the Portuguese around whom other stars revolve at Real Madrid, Cruyff
said: "He's a goalscorer. He'll never be that creative player around
whom you build a team ... But Messi is much more of a team player; he
passes the ball, produces so many assists."
When he's absent, supporting
actors suddenly have to become the main attraction, and that's not an
easy transition -- even for world-class players like Suarez and Neymar.
And
Messi has rarely been absent, starting 56 games in all competitions
last season, before taking part in the Copa America and then a
pre-season tour with Barcelona in the United States. Too much football?
It's
not only Messi that's out. Andres Iniesta, who pulls many of the
strings in midfield, was absent in Seville after picking up a hamstring
injury in midweek. The versatile Rafinha is out for the season. And many
Barca fans think Xavi's maturity and calming influence is sorely
missed. He left at the end of last season to ply his trade in Qatar.
As Cruyff -- who was Barcelona
coach for eight years - puts it, "For me the most important thing is
always the team, and for that Xavi was one of the best Barca players,
because he was always at the heart of the team, he controlled the pace,
the passes, when he needed to drop back."
Even
with Messi in the line-up, Barca's defence has looked surprisingly
fragile at times this season. In the European Super Cup, they conceded
four (against Sevilla); another four against Celta Vigo in La Liga and
four against Athletic Bilbao in the first leg of the Spanish Super Cup.
They've conceded nine goals in seven league games, compared to 21 in all of last season.
At
one time or another Dani Alves, Jordi Alba and Gerard Pique have all
been missing through injury and suspension. Thomas Vermaelen is still
out with a calf injury sustained in mid-September.
That
may explain part of the problem, but against Sevilla and Leverkusen
Barcelona also looked vulnerable at set pieces, and against Celta
vulnerable to the quick counter-attack.
The
international break should have helped with recuperation but a hectic
schedule now follows with six games in three weeks. That's where the
strength of a squad tells. And Barca's is looking a little threadbare.
Besides
those injured, the Catalan team lost Pedro, a selfless understudy and
perennial substitute for the front three, to Chelsea in August. The
players brought in over the summer -- Arda Turan and Aleix Vidal --
can't play until January because the one-year transfer ban imposed by
FIFA for contravening rules on registering players under the age of 18.
Last
season, especially once Suarez had served his ban for biting, Enrique's
starting XI was quite consistent. Messi played in all 38 La Liga
matches. There were changes, of course, but the pattern was largely
undisturbed, especially during the second half of the season, when Barca
went into overdrive.
For that very
reason, it would be hard to argue that Barcelona are in crisis before
the first leaves of autumn fall given the top of La Liga is uncommonly
tight. Barcelona are fourth, level on points with Real Madrid, with both
teams just a point behind leaders Villarreal.
The
next edition of "El Clasico," as the match between the two rivals is
known, takes place on November 22nd and could have a major bearing on
the rest of the season.
That's the match when Barca hope Messi will be back.
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