Are Ansu Fati and Ferran Torres key to Barcelona's success at Old Trafford?

There were conclusions aplenty after Barcelona failed to register the all-important win against Manchester United at the Camp Nou. The home-turf advantage, particularly pertinent to the Catalant giants, was one Xavi needed to make better use of. Alas, Erik Ten Hag proved the Red Devils’ project is indeed real. In fact, one could say the guests were closer to victory than their counterparts.

But be that as it may, tonight both teams still have everything to play for. The eradication of the away goal rule deems it so. In fact, Ten Hag already alluded to an ominous plan for the return leg, promising an ace in his sleeve will take Xavi - and potentially every single one of us - by surprise. But what can Barcelona do to turn the tides in their favour?

A glitch in the Matrix

In the opening stages of the game at the Camp Nou, Barcelona immediately showcased the power of their box midfield. Gavi as the winger is an incredible tool for manipulation while having Jordi Alba on the left also opened the door for blistering overlaps and deliveries. Indeed, Xavi knew what he was doing.

Manchester United’s full-backs are especially geared towards defending the half-space in a heavy man-marking manner. They will generally stick to their man and this is where manipulation comes into play. If the winger is wide, as Xavi often instructs, the Man United full-back is likely to be wide as well. If, however, the winger tucks in and occupies the half-space, the full-back will be pulled in too.

It’s a relatively simple concept that generally works well and is widely applicable. The defenders will often stay with their markers and good teams know how to exploit this. Barcelona are such a team. In their clash, the exploitation of this flaw in the system was apparent. Gavi, in particular, is someone whose skillset complements the approach.

On numerous different occasions, he would pull his marker deep and towards the middle, opening the flank for a potential overlap. You can see a very good example down below.

But there is a reason I also highlighted the opposite winger. This is where a change comes into play. The sequences above all aim to ensure progression and penetration on one of the flanks but the real chance creation is on the opposite side of the pitch. This sort of movement opens up the ball carrier for an eventual cross to the player on the other side.

You see, this action can be divided into two parts: Creation and exploitation. The flank where the manipulation takes place is part of the creation process while the exploitation happens on the opposite end. If Barcelona use Gavi to manipulate Aaron Wan-Bissaka, chances are Rafinha will be tasked with providing the finishing touches. If, however, they use Rafinha to manipulate Tyrell Malacia, the left-winger/full-back will be tasked with finishing the action.

Here’s a snippet from Manchester United’s clash against Manchester City. Pep Guardiola utilised the same approach.

The difference here, of course, is that he pulled the full-back wide to create a channel through the half-space instead of pulling him inside to create a channel out wide. The method differs but it has the same effect nonetheless. This is where Barcelona need to be far more ruthless.

Xavi conjured a great plan for the first phase of the sequence; Barcelona’s creation part was on point but the exploitation was lacking, as is often the case with the Catalans of late.

So how do Ansu Fati or Ferran Torres factor into that equation?

A saviour off the bench

Many have called for Torres’ inclusion in the starting lineup following his blistering performance in LaLiga just prior to the clash in Europa League. And it is true; Ferran was ferocious, quick, decisive, unpredictable and unyielding in his attempts against Cádiz. For all intents and purposes, he was finally the player Barcelona needed him to be.

But we always knew he is a player of great intelligence; his movement, reading of the game, and instinct to be in the right place at the right time are all top-notch. I talked about this in detail in one of my previous pieces on the BarcaFutbol.

But one thing Ferran has consistently struggled with is his finishing. In fact, it’s one thing the majority of the fans would say is his biggest flaw in an otherwise well-rounded utility profile. It is true, of course, since scoring goals, and playing regularly for that matter, has been an issue for the ex-Valencia and Manchester City player.

Fati is in a similar boat, although this is only true for the post-injury Fati who is still struggling with confidence and sharpness. He is a player whose instincts are largely intact but the sheer execution is simply not being able to follow his mind. In other words, he knows what and how to do something but fails to implement it properly.

A look at both of these players’ shooting graphs will tell us more.

In both cases, we can see they have their preferred areas from which they like to score goals. Ferran’s goals (pink) largely come from central areas while Fati’s are more to the left. The issue is, sadly, that Fati only hits 28.4% of his shots on target in 22/23 on average while Ferran sits on 31.3%. Quite obviously, this is a far cry from someone like Erling Braut Haaland, for example, who boasts figures over 50% with more shots taken per 90 minutes as well.

Still, both players fit the profile almost perfectly, especially Fati. The young La Masia prodigy is a master of space exploitation with elite ball-striking in his repertoire. But he is also a player who’s sadly on a downward spiral; every bad touch, bad shot, bad pass, bad move, and ultimately a bad game pull him deeper and deeper. Despite his obvious qualities, one wonders which Fati we’d see if he was to start against United at Old Trafford. The ruthless prodigy or the shadow of that player’s true self?

Ferran, on the other hand, would certainly know how to use the space given to him well. He’d get into those scoring positions but would he actually follow through? One thing is for sure, if Barcelona are to make use of United’s glitch in the Matrix, they need a killer on at least one of the flanks. Are Ferran or Fati what Xavi is looking for? It would be a gamble for sure. But fortune also favours the bold.

Either way, another cracking game is bound to be on the cards tonight.