Barcelona players barely had any time to recover from a grueling international break, earning an impressive 3-0 win over Osasuna on Thursday night – just 72 hours after jumping off the plane. It’s something they’ll have to get used to; Hansi Flick’s side face Girona as their manic schedule continues.
By Alex Roberts
Without a win in their last five games and sitting down in 13th, it’s fair to say Girona have failed to build on last season’s Champions League qualification. Losing Artem Dovbyk and Savinho has essentially made their attack impotent.
Top of LaLiga, Barcelona have no such issues, actually, they can’t stop scoring. In the league alone they’ve bagged 78 goals. It’s getting a bit out of hand to be quite honest.
Real Madrid thought THEY had scheduling issues
Earlier in the season, Carlo Ancelotti bullishly said his side would refuse to play if they didn’t have at least 72 hours rest. Barcelona would be so lucky. The Catalonians have a massive EIGHT games (including this one) over the next three weeks.
Flick wasn’t quite so entitled about the situation, but he was clearly furious about their hectic next few weeks in his presser ahead of the win over Osasuna, saying: “I don’t want to speak about my reaction, I think it is not good.”
He of course went on to speak about it, in some depth, but he has every right to be annoyed. The Osasuna game was ‘indefinitely’ postponed because of the unfortunate and untimely death of beloved club doctor Carles Miñarro Garcia. The powers that be should have been more sympathetic.
A stand out in a struggling side
Girona have been poor this season, but Yangel Herrera has not. The Venezuelan is the heart beat of Michel’s squad, sitting in the pocket between the defence and his fellow central midfielders.
Herrera’s four goals and three assists can only be bettered by veteran striker Cristhian Stuani, who has eight goal contributions for Girona this season. That’s not bad for defensive midfielder whose main job is to start attacks rather than finish them.
Barcelona’s midfield is arguably the best in the world at the moment, at the very least it’s the most balanced, even with Dani Olmo set to miss the next couple of weeks. Herrera will have his work cut out, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t up to the challenge.
Maybe Barca shouldn’t sell Frenkie de Jong after all
The Dutchman has been linked with a move away from Camp Nou since he walked through the door. It’s not entirely his fault, the club’s ongoing financial issues have forced them to try to sell one of their prized assets.
De Jong has refused to leave, however, and over the past few weeks, he’s shown exactly why Flick and Co should do absolutely everything they can to keep him around. Much like Herrera for Girona, he is the base from which everything builds.
With a 94.1% pass accuracy and a 66.7% long ball accuracy, he’s one of the best ball players in the world, never mind LaLiga. Barcelona have had plenty of transfer flops over the past decade or so, De Jong isn’t one of them.
Prediction
Barcelona score loads of goals and Girona don’t, it’s as simple as that really. We’re going to go with a comprehensive 4-0 win for the league leaders, to restore Barca’s three point advantage over Madrid.
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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