Koeman says Barcelona played with fear against Juventus

Barcelona boss hits out following poor Champions League performance.

An uninspired Barcelona fell further into the abyss following a 3-0 loss against Juventus in the Champions League. Ronald Koeman was none too pleased by his team’s performance.

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"“The defeat comes in the first 30 minutes, We started badly, with fear, lacking aggression. It seemed we’d gone into the game not to lose rather than to try and control the game.” he said.“Juve pressed a lot, we didn’t have control, defensively we were not good. We improved in the second half a lot. We lost the game in the first half-our.”Source: Sport"

Koeman’s words are sure to strike a chord with his players. But so will the ones where he seems to absolve himself of any blame.

When asked about his role in the defeat, he said he tries to practice and prepare the team for the match but it is up to them to execute his plan.

His plan for Juventus was to try to stay compact but the team left far too much space and played too far back making the defending for Juventus rather easy.

Juventus were on the front foot from the moment the game started. Barcelona were unable to handle their pressing and were unable to connect the simplest of passes.

The first penalty awarded to the Italian giants could be argued but the Serie A side were dominant in the first-half and deserved to be ahead.

Antoine Griezmann was critical of himself and the team in his post-match interview.

"“We didn’t turn up. In the first half they were all over us. We lacked everything: desire, attitude, wanting to run, to defend… everything was bad.”Source: Sport"

What’s more worrying is this defeat is not simply a one-off. The Catalans have struggled all season against better sides. Once the team goes down a goal, their confidence seems to go off a cliff, and are unable to mount any sort of comeback.

Koeman took the Barcelona job knowing full well what he was getting into. The club were, and still are, in an institutional crisis. The Dutchman came in with the hope that results would be in his favor and that a new president would have no choice but to keep him on.

With the team mired in mid-table and coming in second place in the Champions League group stage, his days look numbered. Elections are set to take place on January 24. If Barcelona keep performing the way they are, it would be a minor miracle if Koeman manages to survive that long.