Dominant result, (not so) dominant display: Barça score 4 but still underperform?

It’s easy to criticise when the team loses and nothing goes their way. That’s when the flaws are in the spotlight and kicking someone when they’re down is what often happens. But criticising when the team is winning is far more difficult. That’s when we have to analyse the details, look for little things that could’ve been better and identify aspects that can take the team to a new level.

Tonight, Barcelona registered a dominant win in a game that felt anything but dominant. When you go deeper into it, it felt like another instance of not playing particularly well and yet still ‘grinding out’ the result. Grinding out may be a strange way to describe a game that ended 4-0 but anything that’s not dominant on the pitch - positionally, structurally and possession-wise, regardless of the result - is grinding out for Barcelona. That is the bar Xavi should be aiming for.

In theory, it should also be easy for a team winning 4-0 against the currently worst team in LaLiga to calm the game down and ease off into the sunset. But Barcelona never showed that kind of composure tonight. And much of it has to do with their verticality triggers.

We often wonder why Xavi’s team is so focused on playing quickly; they’re always looking for that ball in-behind, always skipping play and always rushing to get into the final third. Tonight, we saw a glimpse of where that issue stems from. Granted, tonight we also saw what was a makeshift backline with a makeshift midfield and a makeshift strike force. But the principles should remain strong regardless of the personnel.

Barcelona didn’t control this game because they also didn’t put much effort into trying to control it in the first place. On paper, however, the approach was solid. Xavi knew Elche would drop into a low block and breaking it down would require good distribution that can unlock the defensive structure. Using the combination of Jules Kounde, Eric Garcia and Jordi Alba made sense in that scenario. In theory, Elche wouldn’t contest their possession much and they could use their deliveries to find runners in the form of Ansu Fati, Ferran Torres, Gavi and even Robert Lewandowski. But while it did yield some results, it rendered their control nonexistent.

Whether by design, profile or something entirely different, Barcelona would prioritise going long over a short link-up far too many times tonight. Of course, you can’t expect Eric and Roberto to give you the same security on the ball as Sergio Busquets and Frenkie de Jong do but completely skipping the midfield in the build-up is not how you retain possession and efficiently prepare to assault the final third. There were instances when the double pivot managed to procure a free man but those were few and far between. Instead, the backline would immediately aim for the runners out wide.

With the four-man midfield box, Xavi has managed to slow Barcelona down in possession at times but whenever the ball goes wide, it’s still an immediate verticality trigger. The wingers are also guilty of this. There’s no waiting, stopping the ball, retaining or recycling - going wide for Barcelona means going forward and going forward quickly. Of course, in some sense, it shouldn’t be a surprise when you have wingers like Ousmane Dembele and Raphinha, both of whom like to be running at you, at least in some capacity. But that tendency is also why Barcelona don’t sustain pressure well (or at all) and that tendency is why they often have no control over the tempo too.

The same was true tonight, only tonight it was progressive passing that was more at fault than progressing running. Barcelona’s defence was adamant about finding the wide men as soon as possible and the wide men were (too) eager to engage and challenge as soon as possible. When you combine those two factors you get insane verticality and fast tempo but you also lose any sense of control in the process as well. It’s a trade-off that still doesn’t favour this Barcelona side for several reasons, most of which we’ve already discussed plenty of times.

But I do want to mention Eric Garcia as the pivot in this context too. When it comes to him as the no.6, I’ve been very… Careful. I say careful because Eric does indeed possess certain attributes that could make him a good pivot but then again, far more suitable players than him have tried in the past and have failed miserably in the process. Tonight, however, the context of a low-block, low-pressure team suited him almost perfectly. But I liked Eric for a different reason.

Aside from that his fundamentals as a pivot were (mostly) on point, Garcia represented a very needed antithesis to not only his far more erratic and penetrative midfield partner in Roberto but to the whole vertically-inclined team. Many have already accused him of ‘hiding from the ball’ but I don’t see it as such. Eric was very disciplined in his positioning, as pivots should be, careful if not slightly risk-averse in his passing and generally demonstrated good range and selection in his delivery. All of that made for a very good performance. Yes, it was quiet but that’s when pivot performances are most impressive anyway.

While most saw him hiding from the ball, I saw a player who controlled his zone and eased the pressure off of his centre-backs. His positioning between the lines meant Elche’s first line of pressure couldn’t jump on Barcelona’s backline as freely as they might’ve wanted to and it gave them the time and space to orchestrate the build-up phase. In that sense, Eric was fixating the opposition’s press, creating openings for Gavi to drop into and easing the progression without touching the ball at all. Remember, the pivot should stay in his zone and let the play develop around him. ‘The holding midfielder has to be there and not move. Like the driver of a car,’ as Pep Guardiola would say himself. His simple and ‘safe’ passing also allowed Barcelona to breathe and try and show composure on the ball, which is a crucial task for a Blaugrana pivot.

There were, however, a couple of issues with this still. Eric’s general movement was decent, his pass selection and range good and his discipline commendable. But his shadow manipulation still needs work. He doesn’t have to drop to pick up the ball or demand it constantly, but he has to move out of the shadows at the right time to enable progression from the backline. We saw Roberto do it more often and as a result, the link-up flowed more through him than Eric. This isn’t to say Eric’s presence wasn’t felt; when executed well and his pinning of the Elche’s pressing structure was a success, Gavi could drop to collect the ball and then drive with it forward. That’s influencing the play without touching the ball once again.

But other than his sub-optimal shadow manipulation, Barcelona’s backline tendencies nullified Eric’s efforts almost entirely too. Even if he does his job right, the centre-backs’ focus on going long meant it was almost for nothing. Yes, they had the time to deliver the ball directly to runners but that indicated Barcelona would skip their midfield. Again.

It still feels strange writing this after a 4-0 victory but to me, this was a shaky performance against the team that’s dead last in the table. And again, winning in this way isn’t what signifies progress to me. The latest win against Real Madrid was a step in the right direction. This isn’t, despite the result. Chalk it off to a heavily rotated squad, post-break blues or Elche’s newfound resurgence under a fresh coach but it doesn’t change the fact Barcelona weren’t comfortable (enough) tonight and they really should have been.

There are positives, of course, the three points being the major one. All three of Fati, Ferran and Lewandowski scored, which is crucial for their confidence and Xavi managed to rest players while avoiding a huge banana-skin game. But I’m playing the devil’s advocate here and calling for Xavi to do more. Or to do better, rather.

Just the way he was shouting instructions furiously on the sidelines when Barcelona scored their second goal instead of just blindly and euphorically celebrating, we should always be happy with the win but at the same time, also always ask for more.