Yesterday, we witnessed a cracker, well, for me there was also cream cos I was eating some Belloxi Cream Crackers while I watched. We saw Chelsea hold Barcelona to a 1-1 draw, it was a very good game, we learnt that Ernesto Valverde really does respect his opponents, we saw it at the weekend and saw it here again, we also learned (well, I would not call it learning) that even a tactical masterclass hand in hand with N’golo Kante can’t keep Messi at bay. You’d have to fly him to Guantanamo.
At the start, when I saw the formation, I sensed Chelsea wanted to play on the counter given the lack of a true 9. Morata and Giroud are not especially fast. So I knew they were gonna try to suffocate Suarez and Messi, Suarez was muzzled, well, ‘cept for his diving, Messi? Well he just proceeded to drag Kante all around the pitch like he was under some spell. Barça couldn’t create an much as they needed to, so we regularly saw Messi drop deep to make something happen, it was difficult. Then Willian came around, he must have been thinking “I’m going to make Messi look like a fraud” such was his determination that before scoring a belter, he paid homage to both crossbars. The goal came against the run of play, Barça had maintained a T-rex’s share of the possession(75% to 25% in this sorta game is ginormous).
Chelsea had a game plan they executed very well. They knew giving space to Barcelona would make them bleed. The only lapse of concentration resulted in Messi’s goal. Messi took that finish with magnificent precision. I feel like he could finish these chances with his eyes close. When Iniesta passed the ball, Courtois must have been thinking “No no no no no no no no no no, not him” then Deja Vu. Ter Stegen on the other hand must have felt like Bartimaeus before he met Jesus Christ, “I can’t see, I can’t see, I can’t see” then when his sight was restored, his first usage of his eyes were to watch the ball crawl over the line. I feel for both goalkeepers.
But, Barcelona would have won this game had Valverde been a little carefree. How do I know this? I don’t know. I just know. But seriously, when he took off Paulinho and brought on Aleix Vidal, the Chelsea defense had to go even deeper into their own box. It was evidenced in the goal they conceded. That Christiansen pass would have been on the edge of the 18 yard box rather than across it, then there was another chance, Aleix Vidal again involved, in a similar situation to Iniesta for Messi’s goal, had he released a cutback early like Don Andre did, Suarez would have had a shot at goal but Nah, man’s just wanted to bear down on goal like a ram in search of justice for his children. If Dembele had started that game in place of Paulinho, I’d like to think we would have won that match, because when we had the ball, there were no willing runners, Sergi Roberto and Alba had to be very vigilant cos of Pedro and the fiery Willian. So no penetration because Messi dropped deep and left Suarez alone with the Chelsea backline in their 6s and 7s. Paulinho did make an early run and got a header away at goal but executed it poorly, I rarely saw him inside Chelsea’s box(but I have to admit that I could be blind) for the rest of his stay on the pitch. The first half kinda reminded me of the El Classico in December 2017, where Barça soaked up pressure and then came out to kill in the second, here, they didn’t exert such pressure. They just wanted to hold on to the ball and keep the game under control, which they did. But they could have had more had they utilised their weapons to the fullest, there was Dembele and Denis Suarez on the bench, I expected to see both of them instead of Andre Gomes and Aleix Vidal. But, this is Ernesto Valverde and he’s always got a bigger picture in view. But even Joseph Duveen would have difficulties selling this picture to me.
Antonio Conte is a magnificent tactician. Full stop. Period. End. Any other suggestions? The way he set up his team against an imperious Messi and in-form Suarez was just incredible. He suffocated the air out of their lungs, although he was assisted by Valverde showing too much respect that doesn’t take any credit from the man. For all the talk about him being bald, I think he didn’t let it affect him. He stayed strong and didn’t care about lusting after Valverde’s head of hair. What a man. N’golo Kantè went after Lionel Messi and did a decent job of marginalising his input, Fabregas was also very good at his job of being the deep-lying playmaker(my keyboard just suggested playmate, it should be ashamed of itself) Hazard also played his disappearing act with excruciating excellence. Even popping up with the assist for Willian’s goal. Pedro looked like he wanted some ice cream at some point in the game. Moses was frustrating. Alonso was decent, limited by the tactics, Willian was great. Christiansen did good considering he played against a pairing of Suarez and Messi. Azpilicueta and Rudiger were also good. Courtois’ moment ended with him working his back and doing some object picking and kicking. It was a great game, overall.
Going into the second leg, the advantage is with Barcelona. They have an away goal and a very strong record at home. They will pick Chelsea apart in the second leg, Why? Well, cos they’re Barcelona, that’s what they do. Plus, Chelsea have to come out to play if they want to progress, they need to score of they want to go through. If you attack Barcelona at the Camp Nou, there’s a huge chance things won’t end well, just ask Man City or Arsenal or Bayern Munich or Juventus or Real Madrid. So, it’s kinda a lose-lose situation for Chelsea. Attack, open yourself up and leave Messi rubbing his hands together like he’s about to devour some great looking lasagna. Or defend, no goals and bow out on away goals. We’ve heard Fabregas say going to defend at the Camp Nou is a suicide mission. So, let’s hope he leaves his suicide vest and IEDs in London. It will be a terrific match. I’m looking forward to the second leg. You should too.
Olaogun Oluwafemi.
Suckers For Soccer. 