The humbling of a once great dynasty continues this season as Barcelona drop down to the Europa League.
Their position was confirmed with Wednesday’s 3 – 0 defeat to Bayern Munich. In truth, this has been coming for a while.
The brilliance of Lionel Messi was enough to get them out of the group stage in recent years. However, as recent humblings against Bayern Munich and Roma in the knockout stages show, they have been in decline for some time.
Manager Xavi Hernandez, who they desperately hope will turn out to be the new Guardiola, said he was ‘pissed off’ after the game.
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“We always want to dominate but it was the opposite here. We must demand more. We’re Barca. This must be a point of inflection to change the dynamic and many more things,” said Xavi.
“This is the Champions League, but this is also our reality. It’s the situation we’re in. I’m angry. This is the reality and it pisses me off. We have to tackle it face on. There’s nothing else for it.
“A new era starts today. We start from zero. Our objective is the Champions League, not the Europa League but that is our reality now and we have to try and win it.”
There is a contradiction in these quotes from the new Barcelona manager.
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Accepting the ‘reality’ that they have to ‘start from zero’ is exactly what they need to do. However his ‘We’re Barca’ remark is indicative of why they, along with other giants of the game, are stumbling.
The clubs around them have operated smartly and efficiently, while teams like Barca, United, Madrid and Arsenal have too long relied on the idea that prestige and history is enough to yield results. The trend of hiring inexperienced coaches like Xavi, Lampard, Solsjkaer and Arteta because they are club legends is more of the same folly, as if the weight of heritage will counterbalance years of complacency.
It will be a long road back for such teams considering the proliferation and concentration of the mega-rich clubs. You can see why the last, desperate power grab of the European Super League was so appealing. By the time they get their act together, it might still be too late.
