Wednesday, May 20, 2009

Pep Discloses 10 of 11 for CL Final

Pep Guardiola has confirmed all but one of the players that will start the final in Rome next week. The line-up assumes Henry and Iniesta will be fit. It also shows the strain Barcelona is under with the Marquez in jury and suspensions of Abidal and Alves. The tentative formation is:

Henry, Eto'o, Messi

Iniesta, Busquets, Xavi

_____, Pique, Toure, Puyol

Valdez

For the leftback spot left vacant by Abidal's red card in London there are three possible replacements: Martin Caceres, Seydou Keita, and Sylvinho. Of these I would say Sylvinho is the best options but according to the Spanish press it is Keita who is the most likely. Sylvinho may be old and a step slower than at his peak but he is solid and experienced and can always be counted on to use his head. Keita, in addition to being an MF asked to play out of position, has often showed lapses of judgement this season. Those kind of mental mistakes can not happen if Barca want to beat United. Caceres is a work in progress and really not ready for prime time.

Seeing Pep's intended formation brings 3 things to mind:

1. Do you really want to show your cards, a whole week in advance? There is a reason Ferguson has not followed suit. Leading up to the biggest game of the season, is it wise to give the opponent a chance to prepare and game plan like that? Perhaps this lineup is not as done a deal as is being reported?

2. It leaves the midfield a little exposed. Is it realistic to expect Sergio Busquets to do all the laboring? The Barcelona midfield's defensive responsibilities are usually not an issue because Toure is superb at running and doing the work necessary, and because they almost always have the lion's share of possession, keeping that work at a level manageable for one elite player. Against United that is not a certainty, and with some vulnerabilities in the Barca defense United can be expected to commit bodies forward and attack the space in the center of the park.

3. Puyol for Alves and one of the three mentioned above for Abidal remove an important dimension from the Barcelona attack. Very, very few teams can count on the movement up the flank Barca get from Alves and his set piece skills will be missed. But this may be a blessing in disguise. Over the two legs of the semi-final Alves routinely advanced deep into Chelsea territory. From there he would swing in crosses, the majority of which were harmlessly cleared away by John Terry. Terry and Chelsea were superior in the air to Barcelona. Vidic and Ferdinand will be as well. The idea of bombing down the touch line then swinging in a cross is a loser in the CL final. Not having this weapon may force Barca to improvise, and it could pay off. The times this season when Barcelona have attacked up the middle they have been successful. Just one example of this is Messi coming off the wing and playing in the center of the park against Real Madrid. The shift sealed the fate of that game, and the league. Reliance on Alves driving and crossing also allowed defenses to contract and set themselves. A quicker more direct attack may expose some holes and create spaces.

The final is just about a week away. I am more excited for this one than I have been in a long time.

No comments:

Post a Comment