Let's play the realistic to worst-case scenario game - would you be happy if this offense and Hazard in particular showed up against asshole Guardiola?
No, Marcelo cleared a dangerous ball which Ramos intuitively caught up to the forward to block the first shot.
Worst game after corona break. Idgaf, glad with the 3 points. But we won't get away with defending 0-1 tactic against Getafe or Bilbao.
I’m happy for 3 points but not much else. TBO, CBs + Casemiro all saved the day. Vinicius good in defense and Rodrygo a small spark going forward. Very conservative play, which may be intelligent but it’s kinda hard to watch. Onto the next one.
Marcelo OMG Piss poor game but the 3 points is all that matter in the end. We took advantage of Barcelona result and are 1 game closer to the title. Hazard is awful ,he cant start over Vinicius,it is hurting the team. Casemiro the only standout performence imo. Getafe next,they are in terrible shape after the break im confident.
WOOOOOOOOOO LET'S GO!!! This was a much trickier game than most assume, again this loss pretty much ensures that Espanyol will go to La Segunda next season, they've played the game off their lives all across the pitch which is why despite Vini and Rodrygo coming for Eden and Isco our attack still looked underwhelming, give credit to Espanyol. We didn't bottle the chance Barcelona gave us, that's all that matters, we've taken a huge step towards winning the league now.
That was some boring football once again. First game after quarantaine I could watch. Seems like nothing really changed.
So because he didn’t do one sub for our most in form attacker for two possible out of form players in a 1-0 away game means he didn’t use his subs properly yet again?
Need Barca to drop more points. Winning every game with such gruelling schedule is almost impossible.
If we got another goal from the introduction of Vjr and Rodrygo, then we'd have seen more changes. I think Zidane got very cautious after that sub and didn't want to make any adjustments in case it backfired. He definitely didn't want to change that midfield.
Benzema did very well for a midfielder in the last 20 minutes. 80% of his passes were backwards and stole 1 or 2 balls in our half. We were slowing every attack on purpose and playing it very safe.
A lot of tired players. 3 Points. All that matters. Have to cut players some slack...not easy to play every 3 days. Guys like Isco/Hazard are coming back from injury. We need to keep getting them involved especially with the CL coming. Maybe a Vini/Rodrygo combo to start next game? Have to get some early goals to get Benz off early. Vamos!
That is fair, but every other team have a stacked fixture list too. I'm not bashing this team, I'm just saying we have a lot to work on.
How does Zidane only make 2 of his 5 subs? Even if it’s to preserve the lead, Benzema can’t come off for 5 minutes? Nothing? Come on...
Even when we don’t play at our best, the defense and goalkeeping have been extremely reliable. It was an anxious game because we weren’t creating and there was a narrow score line, but I never seriously felt like Espanyol would score.
Ugly, ugly win, but it doesn't matter; 3 points is 3 points and we're 1 game closer to lifting the title. Focus on the big picture. 2 big games coming up. 4 points should the expectation.
Mariano gave away the ball at La Real in the midfield which gave them a chance and Casemiro yelled at him. Maybe ZZ thought it's better that Benz stays on to keep possession.