Messi marginalised as Barca lose identity and vital ground to Madrid COMMENT: The Catalans disappointing draw at Getafe leaves them four points behind Real in La Liga and they will need to improve greatly to have any chance of winning the title Dec 13, 2014 19:26:00By Ben Hayward | Spanish Football Writer All is not well with Barcelona. Luis Enrique was hailed by his players for his tactical change to a three-man defence in Wednesdays win over Paris Saint-Germain, but Saturdays side at Getafe lacked both identity and direction. Already, the cracks are beginning to appear. As expected, Barca dominated the possession on a poor pitch at the Coliseum Alfonso Perez, but theBlaugranafailed to create enough clear chances as Lionel Messi was forced to drop deep in search of the ball. That is seldom a good sign and the Argentines two most dangerous moments both came from free-kicks - one rebounding off the woodwork and the other saved by Vicente Guaita. Barca could have had a penalty for handball in the area by Juan Valera early on, but also escaped punishment for a similar action by Dani Alves at the other end just moments later and the match concluded in controversy as the referee blew for full-time with Getafes Alvaro Vazquez clean through on goal. So in the end, both sides felt hard done by and Barca, despite their control of the ball and their 23 attempts on goal, deserved little better. With Ivan Rakitic often closer to his own area than the oppositions, Messi dropping deep and no real attacking alternatives offered by full-backs Jordi Alba and Dani Alves, there was an air of predictability about Luis Enriques side - still lacking a real identity with over a third of the season now played. Messi has struggled on such occasions and there is now a worrying pattern emerging this term: Leo has scored only two of his 13 Liga goals away from home. Clearly, that is not all the forwards fault and says more about how Barca have been stifled on the road in 2014-15. We struggled to adapt to the time (the game kicked off at 16:00 in Spain) and the state of the pitch didnt help us much, sporting director Andoni Zubizarreta said after the match. Meanwhile, Luis Enrique lamented: We were better than our rival. We would be talking about a good game if we had put away our chances. But they did not and self-criticism should probably have been the order of the day after a disappointing draw that leaves Barca four points behind Real Madrid in the title race and ensures that Carlo Ancelottis side will start 2015 on top of the table - even though they will have played a game less due to their participation in the Club World Cup. Theres a long way to go, Luis Enrique added. We were first, four points ahead, and now we are behind. Of course I would like to be in a different situation. So it was left to Xavi, often criticised for his excuses when Barcelona fail to win, to tell it like it is. The draw is negative, he said. Its a step back. At home to Cordoba next weekend and then with the winter break ahead, Barca can close to within a point of Madrid, but with Real on a 20-game winning streak, the Catalans cannot afford to drop points like this in 2015. If anything, the interval comes at the right time for Luis Enrique. Time to reflect, then, for the Barca boss - or La Liga could be over sooner rather than later for the Catalan club.
Posted on: Sat, 13 Dec 2014 22:17:49 +0000
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