For those watching Real Madrid’s humiliation of Barcelona in Sunday’s Spanish Super Cup final, it was clear that the Catalans’ biggest problem (aside from their game plan) was the distinct lack of a quality pivot. The only natural in the role is Oriol Romeu, but he played no part in Riyadh after poor recent performances.
Frenkie de Jong and Ilkay Gundogan were tasked with operating in deeper roles, as they have done for much of the season. However, it was clear to see that it was too easy for Real Madrid to play through or around them, which was ultimately Barcelona’s biggest problem, as it has been for a fair few months.
Sergio Busquets is a huge miss for Barcelona, and due to their ongoing financial woes, only Romeu was able to be signed as a “replacement”. Head coach Xavi Hernandez wants to address the situation again this month, but as Sport have reported, he won’t be able to do so, as the club’s money problems continue to prevent a top-level pivot from being signed.
It means that Barcelona’s midfield imbalance will continue to persist for the rest of the season, or at least under Xavi understands how to address it with the options that he has. Either way, it is absolutely essential that a new pivot arrives in the summer at the very latest, otherwise these problems will continue.
Sorry – but what exactly is Frenkie de Jong’s role? The reason given when Man United wanted him was that he would replace Busquets. He is neither excelling in an attacking role nor a defensive role. He can’t be a gap-filler forever. The guy carries a high valuation and cannot turn a game around. Maybe Xavi does not have the coaching nous to utilize him properly but what a waste of an investment. This guy epitomises the problems at Barca. I am a Real Madrid fan but don’t like ticks who get stuck in a club and just earn money.