CHAMPIONS LEAGUE- Slapped, FC Barcelona must rethink: “It must be a turning point to change a lot of things”

It was an earthquake that everyone saw coming. In Catalonia but also throughout Europe. For weeks now, the risk had been known. Measure. And feared by all Catalan supporters. It now remains to see the consequences of this earthquake for FC Barcelona. And this time, it will take patience. Because it won’t be a matter of weeks. But of months. Maybe years. A change of epoch was indeed recorded in Barcelona this Wednesday evening. Just that. “It’s a hell of a sledgehammer“, recognizes Xavi, the new Blaugrana coach.

2 goals: the sad symbol of a suffering team

Orphan of Lionel Messi since this summer, the 2015 European champion has gone through this European campaign being unrecognizable. A figure to illustrate it? The Blaugrana only scored two goals at the end of this group stage, five less than in their other two worst C1 campaigns (seven goals scored in 1997-98 and 2009-10). And to think that there are still a few seasons, the Catalan club was considered a terror which made tremble all the defenses of Europe with its trios of fire (note: Messi-Suarez-Neymar or before Eto’o-Henry-Messi ) …

Times have changed. Today, FC Barcelona is making a comeback as brutal as it is striking. In February, the Catalan club will indeed be in the Europa League, far from the prestigious and lucrative Champions League. “I witnessed a very harsh reality today (Wednesday), summed up Xavi. It is a sad, difficult situation. But reality tells us that we are not up to par. It’s hard, but it is so. We have to face this reality. And the reality today is the Europa League“.

This failure will in any case leave traces. Necessarily. On the economic front already since the Catalan club, whose finances are already in the red, will have to do without significant gains by missing the knockout stages of C1. But also on a sporting level. It remains to be seen what the more or less long-term effects will be. “Today a new stage begins, Xavi announces. It must be a turning point to change a lot of things. We cannot be satisfied with that. We must rebel. Barça’s place is not the Europa League. His real face is not that of todayi”.

All the Blaugrana are in fact hoping that this elimination will act as a shock. “I told the players: we are going to start a new era to restore great hopes and recover ‘Barcelonaism’. (…) We will work to find Barça that we know as quickly as possible, but things will have to be changed, that’s clear“, Xavi warns again.”If it’s a step back to relaunch then so much the better“, concludes Sergio Busquets. Answer in a few months. Hoping that it is not in a few years.