Reviewing Ernesto Valverde’s shortcomings that led to his dismissal
Liverpool 4-0 Barcelona
The Champions League semi-final loss against Liverpool seemed like a major Déjà vu for Barcelona after their poor performance in Roma just the previous year.
Another stunning loss in the second leg by Barca after Liverpool overturned the 3-0 first-leg win from camp Nou to 4-0 in the second leg. Another record-breaking knock out by a team in semis since the 1986 for Champions League; similar to what Roma did in the quarters in 2018.
In a very similar manner, Barca’s defense seemed to suffer from the very beginning and they couldn’t maintain an attacking mode in the game. After Marc-Andre ter Stegen conceded the first goal to Jordan Henderson it seemed to be over for the Barca team. They kept buckling under pressure.
Just like the Roma game, their performance was even worse in the second half. They couldn’t get a solid footing throughout the game and even the phenomenal Messi couldn’t come to the rescue of the team, and not for the lack of trying; they even got close to equalizing with 1-1 in the second half but Suarez underwhelmed.
Another parallel between the Roma and Liverpool game was the critical last goal concession that led to the eventual loss of Barca. While the Roma game saw one at 8 minutes before the end, Liverpool scored their 4th and final goal for the night eleven minutes before time.
After this loss, everyone in the football world felt this was the end of the road for Valverde under whom, the club had come close to winning the Champions League and lost; not once, but twice. And yet, he was awarded more chances to prove his worth and stayed on as the Manager.
Finally, Barcelona have come to their senses that, though Valverde is undoubtedly been successful in La Liga and also helped make amazing memories against Real Madrid with many great victories over the Clasico rival. He is not the right coach for the Catalans as he does not share the same philosophy that the club has used to achieve unparalleled results in recent history.
Next. Lionel Messi talks special duel with Cristiano Ronaldo. dark
This quote from Rory Smith of NYTimes helps us understand what it means to be the manager for FC Barcelona, just like the legendary coach Pep Guardiola,
"“Between 2008 and 2012, Guardiola did not turn his hometown team into the most admired and, arguably, most popular team in the world just by winning two Champions Leagues and three Spanish titles. He did it by turning Barcelona into a byword for beauty, and sophistication, and style.” Source NYTimes"