2. Ernesto Valverde’s little experiment is definitively over
Ernesto Valverde has tinkering with match tactics lately, in light of Barça’s poor performances in the absence of Leo Messi. It worked against Eibar, with a comfortable 3-0 win. But the hard-pressing, direct style backfired against Slavia Prague.
But the Basque coach returned to the basics against Real Valladolid. Barça were set up in a conventional 4-3-3, with a possession-based style and Messi in a free role. Clearly, it worked as Barça put 5 past the Blanquivioletas I Albivioletas.
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The team worked well as a unit, with Sergio Busquets making a return to form. Frenkie de Jong was worn out, but he still managed to produce a top performance. Arturo Vidal stood out, scoring his third league goal of the season.
The backline was solid, and neutralised the threat posed by the Real Valladolid attack. Jordi Alba did not make too many overlapping runs, but was defensively solid. Nélson Semedo started the game poorly, but improved in the second-half.
As for the attack, Luis Suárez continued his good form with yet another goal. His link-up play with Messi was a joy to behold, and he provided good defensive support too. Ansu Fati was underwhelming, but he is just 16 and is still developing.
Valverde’s substitutions were also good. Due to his lack of playing time, Ivan Rakitić lacked a little coherence but still got himself an assist after coming off the bench. Sergi Roberto returned to action after an injury layoff, and Antoine Griezmann helped shore things up for Barça.