Good morning/day sport fans, it's a beautiful day and we've got some entertaining fixtures to keep our passion wet. A look at the Spanish laliga this season shows the there is an ongoing tussle on who will wear the crown or finish top four. With the defending Champions currently under pressure by Zidane's Madrid, it's no news that Barcelona can't afford to drop points now, if they're really still committed to lifting a treble this season. Both rivals are tied at the top but the Catalan giants are only dominating the top spot on goal difference. However, it seems staying up there will only get tougher for Setien's side, as they face a highflying Valencia side at Mestella in few hours time. It's always a difficult test for Barcelona anytime they pay a visit to Valencia, and if I'm not wrong, I think the last time Barcelona recorded a win there was in 2016. With Ernesto Valverde fired not too long ago, the new Barcelona coach have been trying to rebuild the seeming lost philosophy of the Club, "Tiki taka." The impact of his arrival and the possibilities in stock for Barcelona under his watch was given an inkling in his debut match against Granada, where the league champions recorded over 80% of the Ball Possession. The game ended in a 1-0 win for Barca, but something wasn't impressive about that outing.
The Barca squad found it really hard to pull through the walls of Granada, and had to wait until their opponents where reduced to 10 men before they found the back of the net, thanks to the ever magical Messi. The Argentine talisman and Barcelona's captain have continued to be covering shield to most Barca coaches, and have been the player to have netted the first goals for Enrique, Valverde and Setien as Managers. Setien's outing against Ibiza in their last match wasn't that convincing either, as the lower division team led the Spanish champions for almost one hour or thereabout before Antonie Griezmann netted a brace to salvage the night. Setien had opted to rest Messi and it once again, Barcelona showed they're not yet ready for Messi's retirement. It's a big problem that have continued to bother fans and Setien will have to find a way to make the team play without Messi. In few hours time, Barcelona will take on Albert Celade's Valencia who are not leaving any stone unturned in their quest to finish top four. Of course, they will make life difficult for their visitors as expected, and all eyes will be on Setien to see how he overcomes this tough huddle. In the past five meetings of both sides across all competitions, Barcelona have claimed two victories, drew two and lost once to Valencia. Valencia are currently sitting at 7th position with 31 points(same with 6th place Real Sociedad), a win against Barcelona could see them move up the ladder, thereby making this fixture the toughest Setien has had as the Catalan Manager. Can Setien lead Barcelona to victory against Valencia today or are we about to witness his first defeat as Messi's Coach? Let's keep our fingers crossed and enjoy this game.
Comments