We were humiliated because we underestimated that team. Hell, Cruyff was like that trophy is ours and we don’t need to play the finals. That AC Milan team was still better than this Liverpool team lol. Overconfidence is what costed us 94 CL. Choking twice in a stage which includes two legs is worse. It’s worst than AC Milan’s 04-05 UCL final choke. Also that Milan team was filled with world class players like Tassotti,Albertini,Galli,Maldini,Desailly,Donadoni,Savicevic and Boban. I would rather lose 4-0 against that AC Milan than lose 4-0 against a weaker side like Liverpool where two key players didn’t play.
The only bad news will be Valverde staying for another year. 60% of the blame goes to him. In fact all we need is a new striker and probably a LB.
@condor11 Look at the difference in quality. What’s worst? Losing a 3-0 lead in the first leg or losing 4-0 in the finals
how about conceded 6 goals against real zaragora in liga that season? and i believe our players,coach underestimated liverpool as well.
We clearly didn’t underestimate Liverpool. We were battered due to their superior tactics and overall play. Hell, they played better than us in the first leg. Conceding 6 goals against a pretty good Zaragoza that won UEFA Winners Cup is irrelevant since we won La Liga itself that year. Barca was the clear favourites to win 93-94 CL, but we underestimated against a good Milan side like how they underestimated Liverpool in 2005 CL final.
milan didnt have baresi and costacurta,two key players. maldini was forced to play as centre back alongside galli. desailly had to play as midfielder. but it turned out one of milan greatest game ever liverpool is not really inferior to milan 1994. And losing 4-0 ,no matter semi final or final, is reproachful
i think we did. of course players and coach said they learn from mistake,but what happened on the field very contrary
We clearly didn’t underestimate Liverpool. They were actually the better team in both the legs. Cruyff’s Barca losing to Capello’s Milan which was filled with world class players ain’t a bad thing and shouldn’t be compared with our failure to defend 4-1 lead last season against Roma and 3-0 against Pool this season in a two legged stage. Missing Costacurta and Baresi clearly didn’t make them inferior like Liverpool losing their two prominent attackers. Point is Milan still had a world class team even without them.
Errr Romario , Stoichkov , Koeman , Hagi and Guardiola .... and a special mention for Busqs’s father ... thank the lawd he had a son .
Two-legged xG map for Liverpool - Barcelona Both legs were the same story -- not complete dominance like the score suggested, but the home team was better and all the finishing went the same direction. Overall basically even, but that's not what made it a classic. pic.twitter.com/nDdg9BsPxi— Caley Graphics (@Caley_graphics) May 7, 2019
Barça have 0-10 in their latest CL away defeats that knocked them out. 0-3 Juve, 0-3 Roma and 0-4 Pool, comments anyone? Bad squad or coach or both? Barca need a shrink perhaps. Chokers!!
Valverde's biggest tactical error was thinking he had the right alignment in the first leg, and repeating it in leg 2. The leg 1 result was very deceiving. You can't take players groomed to play possession by position, toss in Arturo Vidal, put them in a traditional 4-4-2 and have them invite elevated pressure from a team like Liverpool managed by Jurgen Klopp. This only works for teams designed to defend deep with compact lines and break out into counterattacks. This is not and has never been Barcelona. It does not fit the players in the team at all. Valverde is a Europa League/mid-table level coach and will never been anything more than that. He played directly into Klopp's hands. My biggest concern going into the tie, which I expressed here, was that Klopp would eviscerate Valverde tactically. This is exactly what happened. In Pep Confidential, there is great insight given on Pep learning to compete with Klopp's Dortmund, particularly away at the legendary Westfalenstadion, as he was finding his way at Bayern. The challenge against Klopp, from the Pep perspective of also wanting to attack and be courageous, was to figure out how to both effectively soak up the pressure whilst also still generating a potent attack. The solution turned out to be a 3-3-1-3 hybrid where Pep first developed the inverted fullback concept. This idea was designed specifically to beat the Klopp Dortmund high press and attacking waves. The players deserve plenty of blame, but this result and recent poor results on the road point more towards Barcelona's tactical shift - which began under Luis Enrique - of playing more reactive football. Reactive football against Klopp is a recipe for disaster every time.
Wenger before last nights game !! Quote "Liverpool has another asset that comes out, because let’s not forget that Liverpool did not win the Championship for 30 years, but in Europe they do well. Why? Anfield. "A home game. This is the most heated stadium in Europe. In the return leg, it’s the only place you don’t want to go is to Anfield. "Because the atmosphere and everything is special there. So I am keen to see what they do tonight."
We attacked in the 1st half. Had 3 clear chances and like 3 other ones. Saying we came out with small club mentality is nice and all, but here is the thing, we cannot impose our dominance over a team like Liverpool. We are an aging team that wasn't very athletic to start with. I think EV was actually right in playing Vidal. I think Arthur would have been potentially rattled. Liverpool are stronger physically and more athletic overall. Their quick passing is pretty good and their organization excellent ... with and without the ball. That's not a good combination for us.