Martino gets it wrong, Barca pay the price


Real Sociedad vs Barcelona 2014
Martino dealt his hand at Anoeta the other day and lost out to Real Sociedad by 3 goals to 1. Real’s manager  Arrasate said it was”the best game of the season”. Maybe it was for him, but definitely not for Barcelona’s manager Gerardo Martino.

He shifted Sergio Busquets to the right and played Alex Song in his position. It was a move that Real Sociedad capitalised on and Song even ended up putting the ball in his own net. A lot of fans were left wondering how Martino could play Busquets out of position. Alex Song was subbed just after half time and made way for Fabregas.

The Barcelona defense lacked intensity and the trio of Messi, Neymar and Iniesta up front were all beaten back by Real’s tall players to avoid any dead ball situations that could cause alarm. Arrasate had done his homework and Martino had not.

Barcelona had lost their North so to speak, and with i lost the spark that makes them string endless passes together on a reflex action and cofound their enemies. Barcelona know how to play one game and if you take out a key piece from the puzzle, it all goes to pieces. The Catalans need subtle changes to its play, to be able to digest what’s happening.

A lot of credit should go to Real Sociedad too. The dynamic duo in Vela and Griezmann are enough to put the frighteners on any team. They move well, know exactly where the ball is coming from and don’t stop believing that they will put the ball in the opposition’s net.

Real Sociedad fielded a 1-4-3-3 formation and this is the third system used by manager Jagoba Arrasate in the last three matches against the Catalan giants.Real defended the ball by attacking, which left Barça without possession. And it is not a secret that the Catalan club has no idea how to sit back and defend against a team that is bent on attacking. This was Man City’s problem in the first leg of the Champions League.City stood back and let the Catalans do their thing, which they did. We all know the result of that, don’t we? Instead of City coming out attacking and pulverising the team in front of them, like they do in the Premier League, Pellegrini’s men seemed to stand back and soak up the pressure.

Real Sociedad got it right on Saturday and Martino has to have a long hard look at himself as Real Madrid pounce into the top spot as Atlético Madrid also failed to produce the goods, going down 3-0 to 12th placed Osasuna.

About Aaron

My name's Aaron and I'm a great Barça fan. I like to tell it like it is and if there is something I don't like about the club or something that needs addressing, you'll know!