Barcelona: The delicate areas where Koeman should focus this season

After a blistering start, Barcelona under Ronald Koeman should attempt to continue to play at his strengths unflinchingly throughout the season.

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Whatever happens this season at Camp Nou will be covered with added attention by the media. Koeman’s second year at the club should express a boost in confidence more than anything else. No matter how tough it gets going, the Dutch boss needs to play Barcelona’s trademark of beautiful football and tend to the fragility of his team.

Areas of Barcelona where Koeman should focus

High pressing– Without Lionel Messi at his disposal, Koeman should focus more on creating chances in their games. Not having the best conjurer in the world would need others to step up and take his place instead.

The team has done that in their first game of the season. A lot of players were able to maintain a high press against Real Sociedad. It should be the new signature of the Barcelona side, as they prevail meritoriously playing on similar wavelengths and putting the opposition under constant threats.

The added possession that comes along with this approach is undeniably great as it gives the Blaugrana an added advantage throughout the whole ninety minutes.

Reliance on youngsters– There is no option for the manager not to use the youngsters that he has under his belt. Last season, while Koeman gave the youngsters several chances to prove themselves, he also shunned many away. Players like Francisco Trincão and Riqui Puig were cold-shouldered by the boss to a shameful extent.

More than anything else, this season screams the need for new stars to rise. Players such as Puig are very talented who can change the course of the game and can be the difference between a point and three. In the last outing Koeman yet again didn’t let Puig get involved in his plans. Things cannot continue with more of the same from last season. Koeman needs to understand what everyone else already does.

Building a wall– Conceding less is as critical as scoring more. Balancing both aspects together is what is desirable from Koeman. Barça has done well coming into this season by building on a shaky backline. It is not a new problem and has turned out to be costly in the past.

From Marc-André ter Stegen to Clément Lenglet, everyone has made unforgivable errors in the seasons prior. What used to be a solid backline now is an Achilles’ heel. Newer talents like Eric Garcia and Emerson Royal will have a task at hand to slowly but surely deal with their side’s blotting trait.