The keys behind Barcelona’s Paris Saint-Germain debacle

Barcelona‘s 4-1 beating at the hands of Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League has underlined that, six months after losing 8-2 to Bayern Munich, the Catalans are still a step or two below the elite of the elite. An internal analysis has revealed that Barcelona are short physically, technically, strategically and psychologically.

The breakdown of the defeat can be split into eight parts according to Mundo Deportivo. First is the physical distance obvious between Barcelona and a key rival in Europe, in terms of fitness, speed and strength. Second is Ousmane Dembele’s failure to convert the chance he was given with the score at 1-0, a moment that could have doubled Barcelona’s advantage and really put them in the driving seat.

Third was PSG’s ability to draw level quickly, and Barcelona’s inability to recover from such a psychological blow. Fourth, Barcelona failed to decide on a coherent strategy. They neither pressed high to put PSG under pressure nor sat deep and closed off space. They fell between two stools.

Fifth was the loss of Ronald Araujo, while sixth was the absence of Eric Garcia. Both are top-level centre backs, without whom it was always going to be difficult to face up to players of the calibre of Kylian Mbappe. Seventh was a lack of performance from Antoine Griezmann and Dembele, who didn’t contribute in the final third, while eighth was an inability to defend set pieces.