Barcelona played Celta Vigo on Sunday night at Camp Nou. The game was always going to be a tough one for the Blaugranas with Celta being such a bogey side. And sure enough, things were very difficult for Barcelona as Celta Vigo kept coming at them. Xavi played a back 4 of Alonso, Balde, Pique, and Roberto. This was one of the most inexperienced backlines that Barcelona lined up within a game. Iago Aspas came to Camp Nou having held a great record against Marc Ter Stegen scoring the most against him.
The first half was a great one for the Blaugranas as they controlled the majority of the game, giving Celta no chances at the other end. The inclusion of Sergi Roberto was key as he played as an inverted right back and helped controlled the midfield. But it was Gavi who showed his zeal and enthusiasm at such a young age. The 17-year-old was everywhere on the pitch, winning all of his duels and recovering possession countless times. It was his run in behind the defenders that stretched the Celta defense and resulted in the opening goal.
But things looked far from comfortable in the second half for Barcelona. The defense was all over the pitch and Celta had enough chances to not just equalize but take the lead. Had it not been for Marc Andre Ter Stegen’s heroic performance yet again, Barcelona would have surely have dropped points. But this performance was not at all appreciated by fans and Xavi who felt that the game was theirs to control. The game ended with a fantastic block by Eric Garcia to deny Celta the equalizer. But this performance raised many questions as to why the team were so bad in the 2nd half.
Barcelona needed a morale booster before Inter test
The Catalan kings are struggling in the Champions league. They have lost their 2 big away games against Inter Milan and Bayern Munich. This has put them in a spot of bother as they sit 3rd in their group with 3 games to go. The most important one lies ahead when Inter Milan comes to Camp Nou. Barcelona will try everything to make sure Inter does not feel comfortable. But a performance like the Celta one is not something which will boost their morale.
The team struggled too much and was just inches away from conceding a goal and dropping points. Xavi has accepted the fact that they must know how to kill off such games. This certainly is not the game that would make fans very positive about their UCL hopes. Lewandowski also had an off day as the striker did not have any service that he could attack. Barcelona are struggling and the pressure is on Xavi.
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