The last time Barcelona won the first leg of the Champions League round of 16 was in February 2016. It had been two months since they had been proclaimed club World Cup champions. And at the Emirates, Luis Enrique lined up Neymar, Luis Suárez and Messi, who scored both goals against Arsenal (0-2). That Barça, which is not this one, had gone 33 games without losing and reached 39. Serve as a button of what it costs to win at the start in this round.
The round of 16 is a tie with a lot of intrigue, perhaps because it takes place two months after the draw and with the winter market in the middle. It is not strange because this time only two of the first eight in the group were able to win away from home. City, the current champion, achieved it against a Copenhagen without rhythm, and Real Madrid, suffering and with Lunin as the hero in Leipzig. Not one more.
After two seasons away from the top continental competition, it can be said that Xavi Hernández’s team partly paid for the hazing in Naples. On the one hand, the game plan was broadly what the Blaugrana wanted. But on the other hand, the result surely did not reward them because at the end of both halves Barça could not maintain its performance or its dominance. Despite the last chance with which Gündogan touched the post and made it 1-2, Barcelona ended up defending in their area more than was advisable.
In the great showcase of the Champions League, the intensity and high pressure of a Barça team that conceded very little in defense reappeared. In this section it should be noted that Koundé and Araújo, irregular at times during the season, were at a high level, concentrated when paired with the two stars of the Neapolitans, Kvaratskhelia and Osimhen, respectively.
The pity for Barcelona’s improvement is that they could not keep a clean sheet either. In 2024 he is having a hard time putting the bolt on, and in only two of the 13 games has he left his rival without celebrating. It was in the only well-directed shot, already in the 75th minute, when Naples’ goal came. The Nigerian striker won in the melee against Iñigo Martínez and was defeated by Ter Stegen.
Another detail that the match was under control is that Barcelona ran 113 km at the Maradona stadium, the lowest figure of the seven matches of this edition. If he dominates possession, is capable of settling into the opposing half and does not concede counterattacks, there is less running back.
Even so, despite having the ball and carrying the weight of the match, the fuel is not infinite and Xavi’s team does not have enough for 90 minutes. This is the only way to explain why in the final two stretches of each half the dominance dropped and Napoli could stretch. In that sense, the coach only made three changes and all from the 80th minute onwards. The first substitute was Lamine Yamal, while De Jong and Gündogan completed the duel.
The Champions League is a tournament of moments, of taking advantage of the favorable stretches and knowing how to overcome the bumps, which there will always be. You have to be mature to not give wings to your rival. However, Barcelona – who forced Meret to make great saves – could not close the game in their good first half hour of play. It is not new because only in a third (12) of the 37 games played, Barcelona went into half-time with an advantage on the scoreboard. And in just three they achieved a two-goal difference at half-time, all in Montjuïc (Betis, Antwerp and Shakhtar).
With Christensen in front of the defense, the midfielders can focus on building, inventing near the area, and are not afraid to risk passes to find Lewandowski. But a greater connection is missing between De Jong, Pedri and Gündogan, the most creative helm. They only combined 36 times of the 438 good Blaugrana passes. The German said in this newspaper that to date the three of them have been able to play little together and that that feeling will increase. With the recovered nose of the nine, that could be the leap that propels Barça to the quarterfinals. Tuning is the first step to aspire to reach the symphony.
