Barcelona had a fantastic chance to clinch the LaLiga Santander championship and pull 10 points ahead of Real Madrid.
As Almeria isn’t among the top clubs in the league, everything appeared to be prepared for them, but the truth was totally different. Barcelona had one of their poorest performances this year.
Despite having the majority of the possession during the game, they failed to create any clear chances, and they only managed one shot on goal. Barcelona lacked a beat. At Almeria, their pressuring, which they had excelled at in past games, was nonexistent.
The fact that the players who entered as starts but are not regulars had no impact proves that the reserves are below the calibre of the starters. The Blaugrana lost three points, but they demonstrated that they can’t win the league and won’t defeat Real Madrid on Thursday in the Copa del Rey if they don’t get their act together and treat every game seriously.
For some time now, Robert Lewandowski has not been at his best, and his effectiveness in front of goal has significantly decreased. They claim that the Pole dislikes the four midfielders the squad uses since it means he receives less passes.
At Almeria, it didn’t work with three or four players because Lewandowski had few opportunities to score and there wasn’t much left for the league’s leading scorer, but Barcelona needs his goals. One man stood out among the team’s overall mess because he had the match’s rhythm.
Due to Sergio Busquets’ miserable day, who was unable to direct the team’s performance, Frenkie de Jong emerged as the team’s motivator. The Dutchman attempted to find changes of pace and passes to the strikers, but it was insufficient.
Rodrigo Ely sent the ball to El Bilal Toure, who was able to cross without much resistance thanks to Busquets and Eric Garcia’s lax defensive effort. The striker received the ball and went up against one-on-one expert Marc Andre Ter Stegen, but El Bilal gave him no opportunity. With all of his force, he slammed the ball, and after it struck the crossbar, it went into the goal. Barcelona had a terrible start. They had a horrible first half.
Raphinha replaced Franck Kessie at the break, and Xavi then substituted Ronald Araujo, Marcos Alonso, Pablo Torre, and Angel Alarcon. None of them accomplished anything noteworthy. Nothing was accomplished with the bench’s suggestions.
Ronald Araujo, who entered the game halfway through the second half, was the player who eventually had a pair of scoring opportunities amid the team’s offensive inefficiency throughout the game. The fact that a defender was the one who generated the most threat was very bad news for Barcelona.
Things are getting worse for Barcelona after their defeat to UD Almeria last night since their star striker Robert Lewandowski is believed to have sustained an injury that will keep him out for two weeks.
It will be devastating to lose him at a vital time in the season when significant games are approaching. Ferran Torres and Raphinha are the only remaining healthy forwards for Barça, however Ansu Fati is anticipated to return in time for this week’s Clasico.
The way Barcelona handles his absence over the coming weeks may determine how the remainder of the season plays out for them.
