Xavi surprised with the eleven, both with the scheme and with the proper names. In the absence of a key player for Xavi like Busquets, the coach opted to play with four in the middle. De Jong and Gavi doubled as pivots (later he would change), while Pedri and Ferran Torres designed a double midfielder. A tweak that worked very well and that dislocated Alguacil. The best proof, the initial goal that was a consequence of the tactical variation. Balde driving starting from the free inside area to correspond with a good center for the smartest in the area: Lewandowski. Too bad about the draw so fast. In the second part, the team recovered the 4-3-3.
The game started very even and very lively. Even too much for the interests of Barça. But a positional exchange changed everything. Pedri lowered himself to stand next to De Jong and Gavi went to the top of the square. And the presence of the canary further back brought the necessary calm to the group. While in the 30th minute of the game the Barça team had only given 23 more passes than Real, the team ended up giving out 171 more passes than the team from San Sebastian. When Barça sets the pace of the match, they have many possibilities to prevail.
Without a doubt, Balde was one of the proper names. Being a starter with the first team is a demanding test for him, but also a positive message. And the youth squad played a remarkable match. He fulfilled his positional role very well, he was committed without the ball and ended up being important with the 0-1 assist. As it is also important to highlight Xavi's game management. Because in the same way that against Rayo the substitutes did not serve to end up winning, yesterday they improved the context. First with the entrances of Ansu Fati and Raphinha that ended up being decisive and, later, returning to the defense of four.
