La Liga Preview: With Xavi, Iniesta & Sergio Busquets, the Midfield of Barcelona is Tactically Sound
FC Barcelona will begin the defence of their 2009-10 La Liga title on the last weekend of August. Last season, the Catalan giants won their second consecutive title, and this year they are preparing for a hat-trick of titles in La Liga. Also, they had a great chance in the European Cup last season, but the defending champions were eliminated by Internazionale in the semifinal stage. However, they are ranked the top team in Spain, and they will be the favourites in Europe this season.
In the previous few seasons, Barcelona have enjoyed a total domination of football in Spain and Europe as well. The biggest credit goes to the midfield of Barcelona, which is undoubtedly the best in the world. This midfield helped Barcelona in winning an incredible treble in 2009 and a record six trophies in the whole year. On the international stage, the same midfield won the World Cup for Spain for the first time in their history.
The real strength of Barcelona’s midfield is their ability to move the ball around and retain possession. The quality in their midfield allows them to dominate their opponents in possession for the most part of their matches. All the positions are so strong that rotating the ball is no problem for Barcelona players, while the wings are frequently involved to initiate attacks. Although there are many clubs in the world which have enjoyed similar success as Barcelona, the Catalan giants beat them all in terms of art and style of football.
The anchorman in Barcelona’s midfield is Xavi, who was a vital part of the Spanish team as well. Xavi has great control over his passing, which makes him the best playmaker in Europe. Also, he has a keen eye for effective passes, which results in the midfielder making a lot of assists during the matches. Xavi also has a capability of playing a great holding midfielder, as he has the ability to keep the ball until the forwards are ready to make their runs. The whole team, therefore, revolves around Xavi.
Apart from Xavi, Andres Iniesta is another star in the squad. He was also a member of Spain’s World Cup winning squad. Iniesta also has exceptional passing skills, but unlike Xavi, he likes to make forward runs. His good pace makes him effective on the left side of the flanks, while he is often involved in perfect one-twos in the penalty area. Apart from his ball control, Iniesta has an eagerness to score goals, as his technique is also sublime.
In the role of defensive midfielder, Barcelona has Sergio Busquets, who is a youngster at this point. Although he might not be as strong as his two senior partners, he has, however, developed a great partnership with Xavi and Iniesta. Also, he performs his defensive duties well, as he shows a lot of work rate. However, he is not effective in attacking, which makes him a little useless when the ball is in the opposition’s half. Nevertheless, in the presence of immense quality at the frontline, Busquets seems happy to do defensive duties for a while.
Barcelona usually plays a 4-3-3 formation, so the rest of the midfielders would be used as substitutions. However, there are two notable players that are worth mentioning. Seydou Keita is one of those players; he is a great team player. Keita is good in attacking, and he is certainly strong enough to do some defensive job as well. Also, he can score goals with his explosive left foot. However, he is not as good as others in passing, and his lack of concentration does not help either. Therefore, he would hardly get a start in main fixtures for the team.
Another quality midfielder in Barcelona’s squad is Alexander Hleb. The midfielder joined Barcelona in 2008, but was sent to Stuttgart on a loan deal for the previous (2009-10) season. Hleb has proven himself to be worthy in the past, which makes him an important asset to the team. Like his teammates, he is also great in passing the ball around, as he was entrusted with the same job in Arsenal (2005-2008). Also, he can score a few goals, and can certainly make some assists during the matches.
In short, Barcelona’s midfield is the strongest part of their team, as their midfielders control the pace of the whole game. In order to overcome Barcelona, their opponents would need to strongly counter their midfield. Otherwise, the job might just be too hard to accomplish.
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