Messi is main culprit in the losing the ball stats .. but you have to take a few negatives with all the positives
Messi is overdribbling... at a few points he got into the box and created separation. You have to shoot that!
Coutinho I think it's not comfortable playing the wing in this system. He has mostly dropped dribbling from his game and when he is passing the ball, if you look around, there aren't many options to be honest. Nobody other than Suarez really moves for him. Rarely Roberto or Semedo are pushing on the right side to give him that over the top pass option as Alba does on the left. His cut inside move to curl the shot in with his right foot is pretty useless if other defenses are packing it in. You can see that even Messi has struggled to get his signature shot off lately. It seems like any other tools he has in his bag have disappeared. The shot he missed today wasn't bad because if you've played football, you know if the ball comes quick like that and you're ready or not in the right step it's tough to get power behind the shot. But he is playing bad and not bringing anything to the offense right now. Right now, I'd play him more as a backup to Arthur. I'd even put Malcom in his place on the wing if Dembele is not available.
I totally agree about that shot today, it was a bit behind him and very hard for him to take it, get his strides right, and hit it with power. I do feel like there are 3 forwards ahead of him, and could be 4 if we gave Malcom more time to prove himself. In the midfield though I really need to look more at the full game video of those 20-25 minutes when he did replace Arthur. I worry that he doesn't add enough defense (whether his effort, his tacking, his tracking back, his control of the ball and related contribution to our keeping possession when we have it and winning it back quickly when we don't). But my knee jerk reaction is that I'd rather have Vidal or Alena in when Arthur is off. So then does he not have a role? Or is his role as Messi's understudy? Coutinho's best moments this season were surely when Messi was out injured and we gave him the keys to the car. I think he was man of the match a few times when we had no Messi, but maybe the biggest issue is fitting both of them in the side given similar styles and the weaknesses?
Yep, Coutinho is a defensive liability. It'd depend on the opposition. That's why I think he should be bench. I agree that Alena and Vidal at this point are better in that position too. So I don't know about Coutinho really. Dembele is doubtful for Lyon game now. So I think might see what VV decides to do already in the midweek. Problem is he doesn't want to play Malcom.
Geez, Coutinho + Dembele = €275mn for maybe 25 goals per season combined at best, for players who only contribute offensively. And I am not overly hopeful that goal count will increase in the coming years. What a disaster!
Damn, did not know about Dembele, but you are right: https://www.fcbarcelona.com/en/news/1092544/dembl-with-slight-hamstring-strain & https://bleacherreport.com/articles...dembeles-hamstring-injury-diagnosed-as-sprain Really like to see Dembele able to go, but he'll probably miss out (and Marcelo too for Lyon, by the same token). Without him, Coutinho the likely starter; Malcom the more direct replacement. Or I could see a 4-4-2 with both Semedo and Roberto getting the start (Semedo as RB), Raki tucking closer to Busi, Arthur completing the 4 man midfield, behind Messi and Suarez.
Well when all the focus is on what we paid it makes it hard for either to make some fans happy, but it wasn't my money (and the money was spent when we were pretty desperately trying to replace Neymar after his late and pretty sudden departure left us with a huge amount of money). Both contribute to one of the best teams in the world. Dembele may grow into a better player than Neymar (and is already living up to his high price), as Bartomeu just stated like it was already a fact. As for Coutinho, he played well last season and we were bummed he was cup tied in CL, he also played well early this season, especially when Messi was injured. Pique said this today, With respect to the whistles received by Coutinho from some fans when he was taken off, Pique added: "He's having a good season and maybe the cost of the player has created a lot of expectation, but as his teammates, he has all our support and we need him in this phase of the season."