All About Barça

I should just leave this part blank to represent my speechlessness.

(static.guim.co.uk)

I have finally reached 100 blog posts, ladies and gents! Out of all the things happening in life right now, it was actually pretty difficult, and then I thought of something really interesting. I have strayed away bit from Barça a bit on the Cloud, and I apologize to all you soccer nuts out there. But with all the international buzz stemming from the 2-4 victory over Zaragoza over the weekend, I think now is a good time to get the ball dribbling again. All considering that I don't want to talk about how my March Madness bracket got napalmed (Thanks, Kansas!), and that a guy named Joe has dominated the headlines in Fort Myers the past few days, the time is right for a little soccer chat, especially when Lionel Messi put on another clinic at the Romareda. He's the best player in the world, period. If Sunday's game didn't convince you, you will either never be convinced, or you have no pulse. If a soccer player or highlight makes it into everyday American media outlets without having to pull a John Terry, that's some big time stuff. Like the rest of the world, I have no more adjectives next to describe his play. He must have snakes for legs or something the way he waves through defenders. He makes the impossible a cakewalk. I've probably watched his breathtaking 2nd goal he scored about 200,000 times on YouTube, and I still have lockjaw. With his hat trick against Zaragoza on Sunday, he has tallied 8 goals in the last 3 games, 9 of the last 12 Barça goals and 25 goals netted overall in the Spanish Primera, which is as much or more than the totals of 7 of the last 12 Pichichi (top goal scorer in the Primera) winners. Messi is one of many reasons that Barça remain world favorites, and why I am looking forward to this year's World Cup as much as an 8-year old anticipates Christmas morning. And just to think that if he can pull off on the international stage what he has done all over Europe the past two years, his place amongst the all-time greats should be all but set in concrete and gold, and he's only 22! As hard as it is to think, this type of dominance presents a challenging dilemma heading into the next couple of crucial months for the blaugrana, and it goes far beyond the scare that the Barça defense gave us late at the Romareda.

Time for Ibracadabra to get the magic back.
(www.sport.co.uk)

On the whole, Barça seems to have a bit of a over-dependence on the Argentinian, which doesn't bode well for the squad. Even in the fixture against Zaragoza, you can't help but wonder if Messi didn't perform at a superhuman level if we would have grabbed those 3 points. Not only did he pull off the hat trick, but his aggressiveness in the box drew the penalty which produced the 4th goal that set the victory in stone with a Zaragoza side hungry for a late comeback. Or how about that Barnum and Bailey-like game against Almeria where Messi scored both goals in a 2-2 draw, preventing us from having some serious egg in our faces (even though there was probably still some anyway). The bottom line is that there seems to be one man carrying the operation lately. You sort of have to wonder if Johann Cruyff is on to something when he questioned the effort of those wearing the Barça stripes, especially seeing their play going into the new decade. Barça has failed to fall into their consistent and majestic ebb and flow that has established them as the world's best, all while Los Galacticos have gelled into superb form at the right time and have claimed the apex (at least for now). The resurgence of Real Madrid was totally expected due to the fact that they have too much talent on this team to be playing in the midst of mediocrity through the season, and we can't forget about the beastly performances of Higuain in this campaign. Yes, we have had situations lately in which he haven't been able to field a sure thing on the pitch, whether it was the defensive back situation that led to our only league loss against Atletico Madrid, or the creative juggling of the midfield has happened due to recent injuries with Yaya Toure and Xavi in recent weeks. But ultimately, Barça hasn't made it to that extra gear because no one has stepped up to become Robin to Messi's Batman. Thierry Henry hasn't exactly been pitch-perfect this season, scoring only 3 goals in 18 total club fixtures, while not gaining enough of Pep Guardiola's confidence to warrant him any consistent playing time (MLS dreaming, perhaps?). The same situation is in effect for Bojan, the unintended victim of Pedro's emergence, who unfortunately may just have to max out his potential on loan to another club or be let go all together. As much raw talent as Pedro has displayed this season, I still think that he is not completely polished enough to be an automatic starter just yet. That leaves all our eyes on the Big Swede himself, good ole Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Has the dead weight of €66 million Euros got to Ibra? It didn't really seem like it when he was pulling off goals for Barça like a magician pulls rabbits out of his hat (12 goals in 20 total club games) when he started playing for his new club and was a mortal lock for the top Pichichi spot. But whether it has been nagging thigh/ankle injuries or a bad batch of paella, 2010 hasn't been so joyous for Ibra, and it goes far beyond the minuscule 4 goals in 13 club games. What's worse is that this drought seems to be seeping into his play. The way he apprehensively moves around the defense wondering if he is on-side, the frustration in his eyes from an imperfect dribble, the way he is switching feet on his shots due to the lack of confidence and even how one missed shot will fester in the next failed attempt (How 'bout that wide open miss at Zaragoza?). Even on that penalty on Sunday, I was in prayer mode not necessarily for the impact it would have on the game, but for Ibra's psyche. It's probably fair to mention that playing alongside a world-class player who is playing at an other-worldly clip is slightly weighing on the back of Ibra a bit, but it is vital now that Ibra and the rest know that the weight of the spotlight will only magnify with each performance that is not up to standards.

To get this back, it's time to get on our horses!

(nimg.sulekha.com)

So whether it is Ibra, Pedro, Bojan or Henry, Barça needs another horse or two to shoulder the load and carry the team back to two-thirds of the treble. With 2nd place Premier League powerhouses Arsenal being selected as Barça's next opponent in the Champions League, the cavalry may have to come sooner than later. But even with Arsenal looming and a surging Madrid, they're two factors that give me comfort. The first is that when push has come to shove, Barça has won every game that they have had to win this season. Whether it was the dominant performance in the second league of the knock-out round against Stuttgart, the Nou Camp leg of El Clasico or the late push in the Club World Cup final against Estudiantes, Barça has allowed their flowing brand of attacking football, their depth in world-class players and their tutelage under whiz Pep Guardiola to foil opposing sides and stay within reach of maintaining their status as the aces of world soccer. Through all the recent inconsistencies, Barça hasn't really given us any true reason to doubt them come crunch time. Even though Barça is behind in the league (only by two goals in differential), they are 2 points ahead of where they were at this time last year, and with all the weight up at the top, something has to give, and the world might see it go down at the Bernabeu one way or another. Which gets me to the next nugget of comfort, that Madrid hasn't come through when the lights have shine brightest. Despite boasting a multi-million dollar cast that includes some former players of the year (Kaká, Ronaldo) and probably the most dominant player in La Liga in recent weeks aside from Messi (Higuain), I question whether those whole cast of characters are ready and able to win a trophy for the capital. By losing key fixtures against Barça and inter-city rival Atletico Madrid early in the season, that Copa del Rey abomination at the hands of Alcorcon and their recent Champions League flop against Lyon, picking Madrid as the favorites to win the league is a tough sell, bad economy or not. I do believe in the end that Barça is still the front runner to maintain their titles, however if that second go-to horse doesn't show up, that late-May confetti shower at the Bernabeu will only be a daydream, just like that Messi-Rooney World Cup showdown that has kept appearing in my head.