After the victory in extremis in Las Palmas, Barça makes its debut in the Cup by visiting a team from the second Federation: Barbastro. A competition that the Blaugrana have to face to the maximum because it is the shortest path to a title. Here are my 5 tactical keys for this match:
There are several objectives for today’s game. The first of them, of course, is to win and pass the round. But also giving minutes to less common players, giving important players a rest and strengthening some offensive and defensive mechanisms. With Joao Cancelo out for two weeks, another factor may be to try new defensive fits in view of next Thursday’s Super Cup. In short, to express superiority with football and getting footballers into dynamics to pull them in the coming weeks.
After his debut in Las Palmas, one of the great motivations for today will be to see Vitor Roque in action from the start. And the Brazilian is sure that he will play in his ideal position, that of nine. His entry has to be gradual and his adjustment has to be gradual but he is an attacker who can contribute very interesting things to the team. Starting point to see how he adapts to the new context as well as for the midfielders to get involved with his constant breaks into space.
Interesting match for Fermín López. After a few notable minutes in Las Palmas and a few weeks without much presence, today he will be the starter. A footballer who has to serve to inject energy, intensity and verticality into a game that has its risks. We will see who his partner is inside and what profile he plays, although due to his ability to enter from behind, the right is an area that suits him very well. On the other hand, there is also the incentive of seeing Oriol Romeu as a six again. He started out as irreplaceable in the position and his importance has decreased exponentially. He can and has to vindicate himself.
If Barça is close to their level, they have to impose their great superiority. Of course, you have to avoid any type of relaxation or defensive imbalance as a result of this. The counter strategy, the second plays and the lateral balls will be the actions in which the Barça defensive back will have to be more active and more concentrated.
If we talk about proper names, Barça will have to closely monitor the men with the most goals in Barbastro. And those who have the most are De Mesa and Marc Prat. The first, former Lleida striker, has a job and moves well in the area. With three goals to date, he is the top scorer for Daniel Martínez’s team. In games like the one Barça will have tonight, you have to be attentive to this type of forwards because rejections and direct play will be two very used weapons for Barbastro. For his part, Marc Prat is another type of attacker, more dynamic, much more agile and hard-working up front.
