11 minute read
THE GOOD, THE BAD & THE UGLY
XAVI HERNANDEZ WAS THE CREATIVE HUB OF EVERY BARCELONA TEAM HE PLAYED IN
last season. Neither fit Xavi’s mould of forwards and he will be cursing the board’s decisions to allow both Luis Suarez and Antoine Griezmann to join Atletico Madrid, especially given the likelihood of Sergio Aguero’s retirement. Further departures of players such as Arthur, Francisco Trincao and Marc Cucurella has left Xavi heavily reliant on a squad build on the aging Gerard Pique, Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets, with little budget to rectify the situation in the short term. Nevertheless, this situation could well be a large part of what motivated Laporta to gamble on a coach with limited experience. As a graduate of the famed La Masia academy himself, the expectation is that Xavi will be keen to promote youth team players to the senior side. This tactic has already paid dividends for Barcelona in the last 18 months with first Pedri then Gavi bursting onto the scene to become touted as ‘the next Xavi and [Andres] Iniesta’. If these two are anything to go by, the new coach’s job will be one of ushering in the new era of academydeveloped superstars, the last generation of which was his own. Viewing the task at hand through this lens, Xavi’s appointment could well be a masterstroke from Laporta. The club has already moved to sign Dani Alves as a free agent, and the right-back will most likely serve as a mentor to the young players, adding to the experience provided by the likes of Pique, Busquets and Alba. As these players reach the end of their own playing careers and look towards coaching, their ability to guide others could be fundamental for their colleague-turned-coac. Despite not being at the level Xavi left it at, Barcelona’s squad is also far from shambolic. The purchase of Frenkie de Jong is one of
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ABOVE: FC Barcelona captain Xavi Hernandez holds the trophy after defeating Club Leon in the Joan Gamper Trophy soccer match played at Camp Nou stadium in Barcelona, northeastern Spain, 18 August 2014
BELOW: FC Barcelona's captain Xavi Hernandez (C) lifts the trophy after defeating Real Madrid during the 2011 Super Cup
the few solid investments of Bartomeu’s reign, with the Dutch international poised to take the reins from Busquets in coming years. The arrival of Memphis Depay on a free transfer was a rare shrewd move as the forward has hit the ground running. A combination of the veterans and his two in-form Dutchmen should provide a solid spine to build future Barcelona around. Furthermore, Xavi will hope to count on the likes of Philippe Coutinho and Ousmane Dembele, both of whom have been largely written-o for their inability to perform at a consistent level. Xavi has already taken steps towards this end by introducing his own fitness team, including new strength and conditioning coaches in an e ort to end the injuries that have been plaguing the club over the past few years. Similarly since his arrival, fines returned to the training ground, with the overwhelming theme being dedication to the cause. Barcelona’s players are reportedly expected to arrive 90 minutes early for training and eat at the ground whilst the club will monitor o -field behaviour to avoid dangerous activities, and enforce the pre-match curfew. This is one side to Xavi’s career as a coach that is developed further than the player known for possession-based football. Whilst he will undoubtedly look to take Barcelona back to a tiki-taka style of play with a focus of defending with the ball rather than o it, it is the former midfielder’s meticulous attention to detail that will impact whether he is a success. It is important to note that should Barcelona not perform, Xavi’s reputation will not be enough to save him. After all, Koeman himself played for the club for six years, winning 10 trophies. All that remains to be seen is what ‘La Computadora’ can do with the time a orded to him.
ABOVE: Pep Guardiola left a legacy of success that his some of successors have struggled to match
BELOW: Xavi doesn’t have Lionel Messi to turn to when Barca need a bit of magic
TOP RIGHT: Valencia need to improve
BOTTOM RIGHT: Rayo Vallecano have been better recently
FIVE THINGS WE HOPE TO SEE IN LA LIGA IN 2022
1. It might not be popular outside their part of Catalonia but the fact is, La Liga is better for a stronger Barcelona, and it’d benefit the league as a whole to have La Blaugrana back to their best. Unfortunately, they might need more than 12 months to sort through the mire of the last few years. 2. Valencia are one of La Liga’s giants but you wouldn’t know it lately. Distinctly mid-table last year and riven with internal strife as the board and fans continue to wage war against each other, the situation at Los Che needs to improve. 3. There hasn’t been a Spanish team in the Champions League Final since Real Madrid won the tournament last, in 2018. At a time when Spain continues to dominate the Europa League, it’d be nice to see La Liga lift the European Cup again – but Barcelona and Sevilla failing to get out of the group stage this season means that may be a pipe dream. 4. Rayo Vallecano have been a breath of fresh air in 2021-22 and here’s hoping it’s not a flash in the pan. It’ll be hard for the side from the Madrid suburbs to truly establish themselves in the upper echelons of La Liga but at the very least, avoiding a direct return to the Segunda and a few more years of Andoni Iraola’s exciting team would be welcome. 5. Whether it’s Real Betis, Real Sociedad or Rayo – all of whom approached Christmas in the European qualification battle – that depth is one of La Liga’s strongest points. Few expected those three clubs to take up half of the top six places at New Year but there they are, a credit to the division – hopefully it lasts the year.
PERFECTTIMING
THE GOOD
With some of La Liga’s big hitters struggling for consistency in the opening months of the 2021-22 season, the door has been left wide open for a new European challenger in 2022. However, despite the expected challenge set to come from a household, mid-table name, it is newly promoted Rayo Vallecano who are taking the fight to the rest of the Spanish top flight. Andoni Iraola’s side were forced to battle through an extended play-o schedule to seal promotion from the Segunda Division and they have carried that positivity into the new season. The signing of former Atletico Madrid superstar Radamel Falcao has proven to be a catalyst for Rayo with the team from the Madrid district of Vallecas reigniting their love a air with football fans from across Spain. The club’s inherent connection to the area, and their fervent fan support for social mobilisation and socialist political ideals has been harnessed by Iraola’s brave tactical style, with experienced veterans including Falcao and Oscar Trejo, and local stars such as Fran Garcia, forming an ideal platform. Fans have already set their sights on European qualification – albeit with a trademark tonguein-cheek humour – but the goals of Falcao, and the Iraola-inspired confidence, has laid the foundations for a big push in 2022. With no European football on the agenda this season they are free to concentrate on domestic action, with Iraola hoping to avoid an injury crisis within his limited squad in 2022. If Rayo can maintain their impressive momentum right from the start of the second half the campaign they will be a real candidate for a Europa League place, with Falcao determined to prove a point in the twilight of his career.
STORY LINES
VAR WILL NOT BE RULING AS MUCH IN SPANISH SOCCER
The Spanish Technical Committee of Referees has confirmed a change to VAR use. According to the rule change, VAR will not interfere unless a clear and obvious error in the original decision is detected. Therefore, the referee's decision will stand on most occasions.
GREAT FRIENDS FOREVER
Lionel Messi has sent an emotional message to Sergio Aguero following the striker’s retirement. Messi and Aguero are close friends having played alongside each other for Argentina for around 15 years. Aguero announced his retirement from football earlier after being diagnosed with an irregular heartbeat.
THE NUMBER 7
Cádiz have dropped seven points after conceding in the last five minutes of the game in LaLiga this season, more than any other side in the competition.
Levante became the first La Liga club to sack their coach in 2021-22 following a poor start to the season, but they have lurched from crisis to crisis since then. Paco Lopez, who successfully fought o relegation in his first few months at the club in 2017-18 before guiding Les Granotes to an average position of 13th in the following three seasons, was sacked during the international break in October. The club reportedly wanted to o set a deeper slide in the second quarter of the season, with Lopez picking up just four points from his first eight games. And with Lopez’s previous solid record not enough to save him, Levante appointed Javier Pereira as his successor, less than 24 hours after fellow strugglers Getafe replaced Michel with Quique Sanchez Flores. Pereira’s tenure mirrored Lopez’s poor return with an identical points tally from his own first eight games and he was duly dismissed at the end of November. Levante’s trigger-happy approach makes them the only La Liga team in recent history to sack two managers before Christmas, with a growing challenge on the horizon for whoever takes the helm next at the Ciutat de Valencia. Alessio Lisci is set to be given the chance on an interim basis, but with the club rumoured to be seeking a steady and experienced coach to guide them through to the end of the season, they could dip back into the market. Lopez’s nous played a key role in keeping Levante in the top flight since 2017 as their longest serving manager in La Liga history, and the future looks uncertain in their corner of the Spanish east coast.
FAR LEFT (OPPOSITE PAGE): Colombian striker Radamel Falcao speaks during his presentation as new player of Spanish La Liga soccer club Rayo Vallecano
RIGHT (OPPOSITE PAGE): Falcao celebrates with his new team
RIGHT & ABOVE: Levante players in action / celebrating
FAR RIGHT: Paco Lopez, who successfully fought o relegation in his first few months at the club in 2017-18 before guiding Les Granotes to an average position of 13th in the following three seasons, was sacked during the international break in October.
PIQUE WANTS TO KEEP GOING
Per reports, Gerard Pique is not contemplating retirement from football at the end of this season. Now 34 years of age, Pique is in the final years of his career, and there has been some talk that he might retire given his e orts in business o the field. But, latest reports are debunking that theory and indicate that Pique will keep on playing for the foreseeable future.
ATLETICO MADRID VS MANCHESTER UNITED
Manchester United will face Atletico Madrid in European competition for the first time since November 1991, when they were eliminated by the Spaniards in the second round of the Cup Winners' Cup.
VILLARREAL SURGING
With their wins against Victoria CF (8-0) and against Atlético Sanluqueño (7-1), Villarreal became only the second team to win back-to-back Copa del Rey games by scoring 7+ goals since 1950 (Osasuna won 8-1 and 8-1 against Siero in a tie in 1990).
