There was no contaminating element in the Barça-Sevilla game beyond the morbid return of Sergio Ramos to culé life, also dressed in white but at the head of the Andalusian defense. Grief became infected with a note from Sevilla in which he gave up going to the board lunch and the box and Barça’s response was forceful when they announced they were breaking off relations with the Seville entity for its “unjustified and improper attack.”
The ball began to roll and on the grass there was no additional tension of the massive anger of the Barcelona leaders, while those of Sevilla, who had traveled hiding their intentions, were placed in the stands. In the noble area sat a representation of the women’s Barça that participated in the World Cup, with Aitana Bonmatí, world champion and best player on the planet, with the gold medal and The Best award.
The protagonist
A video of the prelude to a classic Barça-Madrid (April 2, 2016) was circulating on social networks in which Johan Cruyff, died a few days before. He was in the locker room tunnel Sergio Ramos ready to take the field captaining his team. To the right of the white soccer players were the children who were going to jump onto the field with them. The first, the one who came out hand in hand with Ramos, was a smiling Lamine Yamal.
They shook hands again seven years later. More briefly. In the protolarian greeting. They were going to face each other, Lamine Yamal, something more than a child, turning 16 in July, and Sergio Ramos, with 37. One going and one returning. Fate led them to share another episode. More important: the joint intervention in Barça’s goal.
He crossed past Ferran, detecting Yamal’s progression along the flank. The youth headed back towards Fermin, but the ball found the legs of Ramos along the way, who ran towards the goal and scored an own goal. He denied it to Lamine Yamal, He gave it to Barça.
The tactic
Xavi recovered the more or less geometric figure of the squareYou know, two midfielders and two interiors centered in front. But he drew it with only two midfielders. He used Gündogan and Gavi behind now Raphinha and John Felix, two forwards, front. Xavi wanted preserve Oriol Romeu, for example, before the visit to Porto next Wednesday. Maybe he sacrificed it because of the bad game in Mallorca. Injured De Jong and Pedriirrecoverable until the end of the month, only Sergi Roberto and Fermín, another converted forward, remained as replacements.
Reconversion that was useful and timely. Raphinha palm with the curse that attacks the media. The very offensive device, typical of when Barça has needed to come back – above all, due to the position of Raphinha in the interior, cohabiting with Lamine Yamal –, granted Sevilla many spaces for the counterattack.
The problem
Things were not bad for Barça, who got stuck against closed-in rivals, but at the cost of Ter Stegen intervening a lot, too much. More than Orjan Nyland, Sevilla’s Norwegian goalkeeper. The crossbar prevented the goal John Felix and the chest of Gavi saved Ocampos from scoring. The back and forth benefited the Barça team, which was superior in its attacking capacity.
Fermín maintained Raphinha’s high level, and covered more ground with greater physical display, something necessary to avoid Andalusian progressions. His thefts allowed for faster attacks. After the break, Xavi broke the square and Fermin and Gavi They occupied the interiors, with Gündogan as midfielder and John Felix open to the band, then Ferran. Barça compensated, continued attacking without success and Sevilla’s exits slowed down.
The injury
Raphinha paid for the extra effort that the interior position demanded of him. A physical wear and tear that he is not used to when he works as a winger, with more specific and shorter interventions.
I came and went Raphinha and in one of those runs in which he projected himself towards Nyland’s frame, the muscle burst. He forced his right leg to protect the ball from the defender’s harassment, the last obstacle before the goalkeeper, and was stuck. He immediately put his hand on the back of his thigh and sat on the ground.
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There was no other way out than replacement. Fermín was the one chosen by Xavi. A success. The youth player who amazed in the preseason, author of the tying goal in Mallorca, improved what Raphinha contributed. Barça only reported the existence (obvious) of the injury, which could be in the hamstring muscles.
Pedri and Frenkie de Jong injured, Raphinha is the third absentee for the second Champions League match, next Wednesday in Porto. The Champions League appears and, like last year, injuries are worsening in the Barça locker room.
2023-09-29 21:17:49
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