After the day has turned its face, Barça visits the Almería field (9:30 p.m.) with the same purpose as in the next two matches of the championship: to improve the game and secure second place. Opposite, an inferior rival but with the intention of giving joy to their fans in a difficult year. Here are my 5 tactical keys for this Barça-Almería.
Three vital points to almost certify the minimum objective of being a Super Cup team in the 2024-25 season. But beyond that, the Blaugrana also have the objective of improving the game and showing more ability to generate volume of offensive play in general, as well as expressing greater superiority over the rivals at the bottom of the table. And the latter is not a minor issue because the team has had a hard time doing it throughout the season. The match against Granada or Almería itself in the first round match are two clear examples. Party with a message and a double purpose.
Gündogan’s loss forces Xavi to vary the midfield. Mainly, the technician has two possibilities. The first, advance Pedri’s position to the midfielder and place Sergi Roberto in the lower part of the square. The second, that it is Fermín López who will directly develop the German’s role. Something that would make him coincide in the eleven with Pedri. But after the latter played seventy minutes against Real Sociedad, it will be his physical condition that will decide the issue. Be that as it may, and after Sergi Roberto was key in the first round match to turn around a score that had become complicated, it is most likely that the captain will start and that Fermín will start ahead to step into the area.
He did not play against Real Sociedad and will play today. The first round match against the same rival meant a turning point in his clear decrease in minutes (he has played only 28 minutes on average per game since that day) and today he has to come out with the will to vindicate himself with football. And it is a very favorable day for players with an attacking profile like him to bring out his talent. Because Almería is a team that, apart from showing a lot of defensive fragility throughout the season (70 goals against), leaves spaces between the lines. And in this context he has to be daring in one-on-one near the area and in quick short combinations. He can be a key player tonight.
One of the ways to generate danger will, without a doubt, be pressure. Because Almería is a team that, with Pepe Mel, takes risks from behind but does not have the quality of other teams. In fact, a good part of the goals he has conceded in recent weeks have come just like that. Against Betis (previous match), two of the three goals they conceded came just like that. Therefore, Barça has to press high and with determination. Of course, they will have to adjust the high pressure a little better than they did in the first half against Real Sociedad because Almería also organizes their game based on an exit of three center backs and two lanes.
Highlight two players from the Andalusian team. The first, Lucas Robertone. A positional midfielder but also with criteria to play and a fixture for all the coaches who have been on the bench (third field player with the most minutes). With an average of 38.4 passes per game, he is the player who has the most weight in the game of all those in Almería’s engine room. On the other hand, we will have to be attentive to the irregular, young, but unpredictable, Luka Romero. He is not a starter but he is a footballer that Pepe Mel is pulling to revitalize the second half. And he usually does it. He just scored a goal against Betis and that gives him options to be there from the beginning. Whatever the case, he will play and we will always have to keep an eye on him because he has very electric movements.
