Out of the Champions League. Looking from behind in the league chase. Out of the Copa del Rey. The last time Barça lost three times in a row was in the first months of 2003, and even then it wasn’t as bad as it is now. But who’s to blame? The coach? The players? Messi?! or perhaps the board. After 5 years of success, last night’s match truly marked the end of an era at the Catalan club. Poor results, thin squad and awkward tactics, things haven’t been this bad for some time.


Former Newell’s Old Boys and Paraguay coach Gerardo Martino was selected amongst reported candidates like Marcelo Biesla, Michael Laudrup and Luis Enrique, to continue leading Barça during one its most historic eras. The man had no European experience, yet he was still a gamble the board were willing to take. But Tata did very well in the first part of the season; he was able to motivate his players, bring the best out of the likes of Alexis Sánchez, bring in good results, rotate the squad and give the fans reasons to gloat. The fans were reminded once again of Pep’s Barça. The pressure and intensity that we lacked in the last couple of years were back, the defensive line was more disciplined and the final third witnessed magic at its best. Some hoped to dream of another treble. Everything seemed harmonious, and it almost felt like Tata was out to get the world, but 2014 struck a storm he could never manage. Off-field gossips turned into the club president’s resignation. Yet Tata was still up for the fight, cautious of a month that always shows a dip in form, that month was February. But his awareness showed nothing on the pitch, and it was all downhill from there. Once fighting for treble dreams, it only took three games to tarnish an entire campaign. Culés made fun of Real Madrid in last’s year campaign when players like Mesut Özil would talk of treble dreams, then find themselves with only empty words. Well, the joke’s on us this time folks.

Is it fair to blame Martino? In his first season ever in Europe, he beat teams like Real Madrid and Manchester City both home and away, something unimaginable during Tito Vilanova’s charge last season. Yet Tito achieved a record-breaking league campaign despite poor results against Real Madrid and Bayern Munich, and a league crown meant he had something to show for it. But Tata doesn’t, and despite giving the fans their gloating rights every now and then against the bigger teams, he was exposed by the smaller ones. There’s a reason why teams like Real Madrid, Chelsea, Manchester City and Bayern Munich would spend so much to bring a coach with a high reputation, and that reason is the authority they can assert in the locker room. Tata looked fine and pleasant when things were going his way, but where was he in the times of crisis?

Tata Martino stated when he came in charge that he was satisfied with the current squad and needed no additions. Whether it was the board pressuring the coach or the coach overwhelmed by the immense talent the club has, the coach took on a responsibility that day. If we take a look at the team’s squad for the past three games, they all have similar features: lack of defence, the inclusion of an out of form Cesc Fábregas and a partnership upfront that is promoted by the media rather than its performance. The rotation policy died since the game against Real Sociedad, from then Tata failed to give each player their deserved playing time. The man who once had the balls to bench Messi at his best is now begging him to spark at his all-time low.

I think we all remember when Martino said that “the team will always suffer when it comes to defending aerial balls” but if that is the case, why did he choose to watch from the sidelines during the winter transfer period ? It has been clear for a long, long time that we are in desperate need of tall defenders, or even tall players in general, yet Martino did nothing. He knew the weaknesses of his defense, he knew that the time would come when we would face Europe’s best and he knew that a retiring legend, a young prospect, a converted midfielder and an inconsistent star could struggle when it most mattered. And how did Martino react? Well, the game against Granada proved a very important point to me: Tata Martino would rather play a defensive line with no natural defenders before calling up one of Barça B’s prized products such as Edgar lé or Frank Bagnack. Remember the youth? That place which brought out about 75% of our current squad? And it’s not as if Puyol’s absences came by surprise; Puyol’s been struggling to get back to full fitness for a very long time now, a time during which the coach should have considered all matters and prepared a youngster for his big day. But today we look back at that horror of a week and wonder: If I was a Barça B player, will I ever get my chance? If I was Dani Alves, would I still post a video of myself dancing in club attire on perhaps the morning of the biggest game of the season? If I was Cristian Tello, does the coach even notice me anymore?

Some may argue that the players are nowhere near their top form, and that is absolutely correct, but do you honestly believe that Martino is doing his best as Barça’s coach? If there was one person who lost his passion for the game lately, it was him. All great coaches are great motivators, and it is his job to lift up the team’s spirit when it is at its worst. Here’s a question: what makes Diego Simeone and Jurgen Klopp so special? It is the passion and energy they bring to the field. They’re different. It is never just about the tactics, Martino isn’t acting as a leader. Even José Mourinho, in his own crazy way, knows how to extract the players’ best when it’s most needed; all great coaches possess impeccable leadership skills.

We’ve all been thinking for a week now what is up with all of these crosses. Why cross the ball when your centre forward is 1.69 meters tall? Is that a new version of tiki-taka? Dani Alves has wasted numerous chances and ruined attacks with inaccurate, useless crosses against Atlético and Real Madrid, and what did Martino do? We discussed before the team’s need of a classic #9 striker, a target man, that would act as a plan B; a player that would give us a chance to fight back through utilising air balls, but where is he now? If crosses have turned into such an important aspect of our playing style, where is the guy that would actually make use of all this? “Barça have a way of playing that is hard to modify. There are no long balls for a pure number nine, we’re a team that passes the ball, elaborates plays and when we aren’t precise in finding space the game becomes uncomfortable for us,” said Martino yesterday following the loss. Wow. We’ve stood by Martino all season long, even after the Champions League’s exit and the depressing loss against Granada, but yesterday’s was just too much to handle.

Alexis is having, by far, his best season at Barça, and has proven several times this season that he can be depended on. Where was he? Martino’s choice of playing Iniesta on the left wing, Neymar on the right wing, and Cesc in the midfield has worked against Manchester City, and Manchester City alone. He believed starting with Xavi, Busquets, Iniesta, Cesc would help gain more control, but sometimes control isn’t what you need. Sometimes you need a heart like Alexis’ on the field. The energy, power and pace the Chilean adds to the team is undeniable as we’ve all witnessed many times this season. So why bench an in-form striker for an out-of-form midfielder when you are out there to win? We faced Atlético knowing that we must score at least a goal for a chance of qualification, and Martino kept his second-best attacker on the bench, preferred playing Cesc as a false nine, moved Messi to the right wing and it was a disaster. Barça struggled and failed to create decent chances. Then came Madrid, and Martino decided to put Neymar on the right wing where he is as useful as a floppy disk nowadays, and kept Sánchez on the bench once again, only to introduce him in the 85th minute after the team just conceded Gareth Bale’s goal.

Martino decided to play it safe, for he was out of ideas and out of luck. He disregarded the fact that Barça were facing the same opposition but in a much different situation, because Carlo Ancelotti was finally prepared, having lost twice before. Ancelotti reacted, Martino didn’t. Guardiola had the guts to even start with three defenders when he knew the team needed to push for a goal, and these decisions are what separate great coaches from mediocre ones. It shows how far you are willing to go to reach glory.