Distressing victory signed by Barça in Cádiz (0-4). It was shocking what was experienced in the stands of Nuevo Mirandilla when nine minutes from the end a man suffered a heart attack. Until his vital signs were recovered, silence took over the stadium. It was 56 minutes that became eternal. On the pitch, things weren’t rosy for Barça either. Cadiz is Cadiz.
The Blaugrana team knows this well, unable to beat them since Cádiz promoted to the First Division in 2020. But Xavi managed to carry out his plan. He revolutionized the eleven and recovered for the cause an excellent Frenkie de Jong, the only starter of the scorers. The goals of Lewandowski, Ansu Fati and Dembélé who came to the rescue in the second half were added to the Blaugrana account. Test passed. A few years later, Barça will finally leave for Munich with the feeling that winning is possible.
This victory was important. Because it was in Cádiz where it all began. A year ago Koeman appeared in the press room before visiting the New Mirandilla. He took off his glasses and read a terse statement. Nobody expected it. The Dutchman asked for support. He already looked out after the blushing 3-0 he conceded against Bayern at home. Things did not improve. The Blaugrana’s draw in Cádiz was reason enough for the club to start probing Xavi. A year later, Barça has gone from “this is what there is” to “here there is everything”. There is a plan with everyone and for everyone.
It was impossible for Barça to appear in the fiefdom of the bottom side of the First Division who had conceded ten goals (now there are 14) and had not scored any, thinking that they could win without Lewandowski, Pedri, Koundé or Dembélé. So, with one eye on Germany and under the discourse of “here there are no starters or substitutes” Xavi lined up an eleven with nine changes. Among them Memphis and Piqué, starters for the first time this year.
The plan faltered at times. Barça was very far from having a fluid relationship with the ball. He did not begin to breathe until Frenkie de Jong, willful and a tightrope walker, scored the 0-1 to an empty goal assisted by Gavi. It was a cheating match against the bottom side of Primera who appeared at home with a defensive line of six on the day that the entity celebrated 112 years of history.
Xavi asked for calm. And Barça had to work and chew the game with De Jong helping Piqué in the ball out and with Bellerín, who finally made his debut with the first team. The new and only right-back in the squad managed a cross from Sobrino as soon as the ball began to roll against a somewhat worn pitch. Thank goodness for Gavi, who recovered balls and used the inside lane well to connect with an insistent Raphinha . The Brazilian, determined to score in all the stadiums he steps on, was one of the few who attracted attention in the first half by stamping the ball on the left post. It was then recovered by Ferran Torres who tried to find the goal without success because he ran into Ledesma. Memphis, the third member of the trident, was also tried. He took advantage of a Bellerin cross to throw a ball at the far post. Neither of the two forwards convinced.
Barça arrived at the intermission tired, worn out and enraged. The referee Del Cerro Grande helped a lot. He took the yellow card from Raphinha, who rushed in with a tackle on Lucas Pérez. But then he avoided a penalty on Balde, a hard tackle from Sobrino to Busquets and he whistled the reverse for a foul by San Emeterio that ran over Gavi. Sanity and light were lacking. Nothing new in the Nuevo Mirandilla against a Cádiz that did not even attack, comfortable in its rockiness.
The team asked for changes. Lewandowski, Pedri and Dembélé began to warm up while Barça gave Cádiz a lateral free kick. When Barça was undoubtedly going through its worst moment, a good internship by Gavi forced Ledesma to intervene. De Jong was there to catch the ball and push it to the bottom of the net. The calm increased with the departures of Pedri, Dembélé and Lewandowski. Marcos Alonso also made his debut, replacing a tired Balde. But it was the Pole who provided total calm. He did not miss his appointment with the goal and neither with the assists. He battled a ball and won the position from Zaldua. He saw Fati arrive and gave it to him to push it to the back of Ledesma’s goal, somewhat disheartened after part of the stands emptied after the Cadiz fan’s heart attack. Dembélé joined the scoring account with a double cut in the crescent and a shot from the edge of the box. Three points and Munich.
