Ronald Koeman has been fighting against the tide ever since he was appointed Barcelona head coach last August, but now it appears he could well be “sunk”, as one Spanish paper had on their front page on Thursday.
Wednesday night’s 3-0 defeat at Benfica was their second in the Champions League by that scoreline after being humbled at home by Bayern Munich a fortnight ago.
Bottom of Group E, Barca are also sixth in La Liga, where they are yet to lose, though three draws in six games has them playing catch-up already with table-toppers Real Madrid.
The loss to Benfica could well be the final straw for Koeman, with the Spanish newspapers painting a bleak picture for the Dutchman on Thursday morning.
“Sunk” was the solitary word of choice for AS on their front page. Mundo Deportivo declared Koeman “Against The Ropes”, Sport stated “This Is A Nightmare”, while Marca’s “Siniestro Total” could translate as “Total Catastrophe/Disaster”, “Ominous”, “Total Crash” or “Complete Write-Off” – take your pick, none of them are positive.
It is difficult to believe it was anything but catastrophically ominous from the very beginning. Koeman arrived after the 8-2 defeat to Bayern Munich, leaving his role with the Netherlands to walk into a civil war.
Lionel Messi declared he wanted to leave just six days after Koeman was hired, with Argentinian newspaper Diario Olé detailing a frosty first meeting between the pair, claiming the new Barcelona head coach told the six-time Ballon d’Or winner “your privileges here are over”.
All this after Koeman had already shown Luis Suarez the door, while then-president Josep Maria Bartomeu had already rocked the boat when naming just eight players as “non-transferrable”.
Messi eventually stayed – as we now know, for just the one season – but Suarez was joined by Ivan Rakitic, Arturo Vidal Arthur, Nelson Semedo, Rafinha as part of a clea-rout, and having already signed Miralem Pjanic and Francisco Trincao, Koeman’s only addition was right-back Sergino Dest.
Bartomeu then announced his resignation in October, when he also dropped the European Super League bomb which would come to fruition and a spectacular collapse six months later, and this instability off the pitch came at a time when Barca were also suffering on it.
October 2020 saw league defeats to Getafe and then crucially Real Madrid, while draws with Sevilla and Alaves halted what had been a decent start to the campaign. Further defeats to Atletico Madrid and Cadiz followed, with Koeman admitting the latter was a “huge step back” for the club.
Perhaps surprisingly, a 17-game unbeaten run in the league boosted their title hopes, while 15 points from their Champions League group ensured a smooth passage into the knockouts. However, it all came unstuck when they met Real once more, losing 2-1 to their great rivals in April as leaders Atletico Madrid were losing their grip on the trophy.
Barca remained in contention, but in their final five games they picked up eight points, which included a goalless draw with Atletico, who held on to win their first title since 2014.
This title race played out months after Barca had already exited the Champions League, with a 5-2 aggregate defeat to Paris Saint-Germain in the last 16 their earliest exit for 14 years, while a rare bright moment was winning the Copa del Rey in April.
Cue a summer which will go down in Barcelona folklore. Lionel Messi left, new president Joan Laporta announced the club were £1.15bn in debt, while Gerard Pique, Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba all agreed pay cuts so free transfers Sergio Aguero, Memphis Depay and Eric Garcia could be registered. To cap it off, Antoine Griezmann left on deadline day, returning to Atletico a year after Barca had gifted them Suarez, and two years after he moved to the Nou Camp for £107m.
Barca have since dropped from second to sixth when it comes to spending limits in La Liga, plummeting from €347m (£300m) to €98m (£84.7m), and while the parlous state of the club’s finances is not Koeman’s primary concern, results on the pitch have done little to deny the fact they are no longer dining at Europe’s top table.
It has been a sorry September for Barca, losing to Bayern 3-0, drawing with Granada 1-1 then Cadiz 0-0, beating Levante 3-0 but then losing 3-0 to Benfica on Wednesday night.
The defeats on the European stage are the most damaging for the five-time European Cup winners. Six years on from Messi, Suarez and Neymar guiding the club to the treble, they are being regularly humiliated in the Champions League.
“I don’t think it was a big test,” Benfica’s Rafa Silva said after his side waltzed past Barcelona, while Koeman is now relying on the backing of his players to cling onto his job.
“That’s the easiest thing in the world of football, but everyone has their share in the responsibility, [including] the players,” Busquets said when asked about the prospect of Koeman being fired. “But we’re in a critical situation, that’s the truth.”
Koeman said he feels “very supported” by his players, with Frenkie de Jong also admitting a managerial change is not the “solution”, but whether this backing is enough to stay in charge remains to be seen.
Reports in Spain suggest he could be sacked on Thursday, while ESPN reported last week that Barca are already exploring their options, with club legend Xavi Hernandez and Belgium boss Roberto Martinez among the current frontrunners.
Next Barcelona manager odds
(Best available)
- Xavi – 2-1
- Andrea Pirlo – 11-4
- Roberto Martinez – 6-1
- Antonio Conte – 10-1
- Erik Ten Haag – 14-1
Xavi has long been sounded out as a future Barcelona head coach, but the Al-Sadd coach dismissed the club’s advances in 2020 and may be reluctant to swap Qatar for Catalonia this time around as well given the mess his former side are in.
Martinez, meanwhile, has reportedly been championed by sporting director Jordi Cruyff, although the prospect of another former Everton manager who has failed to steer Belgium’s “golden generation” to a major trophy is unlikely to stir Barca’s culers.
Andrea Pirlo is also 11-4 with some bookmakers, with the Italian only boasting the one season of managerial experience so far – a campaign where Juventus’ nine-year run of titles came to an abrupt end with a fourth-place finish.
Again, perhaps not an inspiring option, but at this exact moment, neither are Barcelona.
from Football – inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/2Y56jKf
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