"We are going to look at what Getafe and Celta did, games in which Barça suffered, and we will add things about our virtues." Mallorca coach Javier Aguirre already announced it on the eve of the match against Barcelona. From saying to fact. Defense of five and two players up top to pick up balls and take advantage of second plays. With this disciplined formula, especially in terms of the protection system, the Balearic team, which had just been beaten against Girona, earned a draw against the Blaugrana team. Like Getafe did on the first day. And how Celta was about to achieve that was winning 0-2 until the 81st minute.
Beyond the lack of attention near their goal, since Barça has conceded as many goals in seven games as last season in 23, what should Xavi's team do to attack better? Former footballer Miquel Soler, who defended the colors of, among others, Barça, Espanyol, Madrid, Atlético and Mallorca, and who is now based in Palma, believes that one of the keys to dismantling a defense of five is in be very dynamic on the wings. “You need very open wingers with one-on-one ability. Furthermore, if they are with a changed leg, in my opinion better, because then they can associate more,” indicates the Catalan. In his opinion, a typical play that should be tried to repeat is that of Barcelona's second goal, the work of Fermín López. “The example of what needs to be done is in 2-2. Lamine Yamal attracts the center back and partners with Raphinha, who looks for space behind him and crosses for Fermín to score. This movement must be done continuously to open a defense of five.”
Francisco José Carrasco, a great dribbler during his time as a footballer, focuses on the ability to overcome defenses. “Against a defense of five, always dribble, because the dribble is the knife, the one that allows you to overwhelm and disrupt the opponent. In this sense, Lamine Yamal is deserving of playing even more minutes. He has so much talent that when he comes out you have to give him more balls. But it's good that the other forwards have been stung by his emergence. There is the case of Raphinha, who is improving.” For Lobo, Lamine's dribbling style is similar to his and Thierry Henry's. He “does not carry the ball sewn to his foot like Maradona or Messi, shorter footballers, but rather he dribbles showing the ball like a hook.” Pichi Alonso agrees with Carrasco that “Lamine Yamal must be an important player against defensive systems like Mallorca's. He is now perhaps the most unbalancing player on the team in one-on-one situations, which is what is needed when collectively you cannot overcome the opponent.”
One of Barça's problems in Mallorca, according to Soler, was that on the other side, on its left flank, it did not have players like Lamine and Raphinha. “On that side you have Balde, but Balde, with a defense of five, has a harder time leaving due to speed. He needs to make the wall with someone and look for space,” reasons the former left back.
Soler also believes that there are other aspects to improve. “Barça focused a lot on attacking through the center. In my opinion, he did not know how to take advantage of the fact that Mallorca only had three midfielders, so there was space there. Cancelo did not know how to correctly interpret that there could be a deeper understanding.”
Regarding the midfield, Carrasco underlines the following: “In Mallorca it was not a problem with the forwards, but rather that the ball arrived very late and the coverage was made. Oriol Romeu played the worst game I have seen from him in a long time. He was slow.” Speed is what Pichi Alonso asks for. “The circulation of the ball must be fast to cause errors in the rival defense with changes of orientation. The more passes there are and the slower it is, the more difficult it is because you give the rival time to organize itself,” recalls the former forward. The next game is already here. Tomorrow against Sevilla.
