All children in the world are born to be center forwards. It's not serious, unless they die convinced that the world, hostile and unjust, prevented them from reaching glory. FC Barcelona caresses one of the leagues it most needed in 93 years of competition. Perhaps that is why it is appropriate to dignify what makes it feasible: the goalkeeper, the defense and the selfless spirit of some midfielders.
The most Italian League in the history of Barça? I would say yes. So what?
Even if it seems like a lie, FC Barcelona is having a record season. It is the team with the fewest goals conceded in the seven major European leagues. And Ter Stegen is on his way to more marks such as the number of clean sheets in more games in a season or the number of goals conceded (9 in 30 games).
As football takes on the dimension of spectacle and stadiums like the Camp Nou are filled with tourists eager to live an "experience", devoid of base instincts and hatred towards competitors, winning thanks to defensive value can seem demeaning . Almost unsportsmanlike!
Incomprehension towards a defensive Barça is not an exclusive defect of this club. Our society, for example, demands security and often has a tendency to despise the police who guarantee it. Unlike in other times, defenders are no longer forced to distribute firewood at home and at home - one of the virtues of FC Barcelona's legendary defenders such as Rifé, Torres, Gallego and Eladio-.
Puyol and Piqué have marked an era, but overshadowed by sparkling strikers and the deity of Messi. This season, orphans in everything, we have succession. Xavi Hernández has been able to build a defense based on Ter Stegen and the authority of the Uruguayan Araújo (finally a gem at a good price!), to which colleagues have been added (the only bad news is the irregularity de Koundé, who hasn't finished putting on the fringes).
The defenders are the supportive characters of football. The editors and proofreaders of books that sign another, the authors. The anonymous firefighters of forest fires. They deserve a monument, a monument that we all know – they are the first – will never arrive.
Selfishness is expected from the front center, from the defender everything that allows a group or society to sleep peacefully at night, without fear of thieves. If FC Barcelona wins the League, some dogmas of faith will have to be modified. Or deposit them in a drawer waiting for the good scoring days to return. In the meantime, give me bread and defenses and call me a fool.
