SunFlash
9 years ago
I totally empathize with Enrique. Barca's problem with its fans is not unique though, look at any other team who has been enormously successful for a long time. Real Madrid, Juventus, Bayern, PSG, etc, all get very poor in-stadium fan participation, because the fans are simply desensitized to the problems the rest of the world has, like, I don't know, losing. I remember United fans used to be like that (and aren't anymore for obvious reasons, wow we fell far) and that was directly due to how successful we had been. As soon as below-elite performances became a week-to-week gig instead of an anomaly, fans adjusted and we went from there. For Barca, my god, you guys haven't had a bad season or CL campaign in probably over a decade.
In summary: Barca's fans don't know how to act while losing to what they deem as "inferior opposition" and trust me, you want it to stay that way. With the exception of Liverpool, the size of a fan's ego is usually directly related to how good their club is.
Luis Enrique was angry at whistling from Barcelona fans when the team were losing: “If we don’t run, ok, but the team was trying its heart out”.
"The injury to Iniesta brought everyone down, first for the player himself but also because it’s almost a joke at this stage. It’s another handicap but we’ll show that we’re competitive. My players deserve a huge amount of credit for turning around a very dificult situation", assured Luis Enrique after his team’s 2-1 victory over Bayer Leverkusen that puts them top of Group C.
Barça’s lack of game: "That's football. Sometimes you win with faith, sometimes with heart, and sometimes with great play. Today it was faith that got us through. The team will be strengthened by this win. We won back the belief today. I’m not complaining about the fans but this team deserves more. Most of the fans support us but you could hear whistling. At 2-1 we don’t need the support but at 0-1 we do. Those whistling; don’t. We deserve more than that. Footballers are going to play who need encouragement, not whistling".
Whistling from the fans: “We needed their support today when things weren’t going our way. You can hear the whistling very clearly from the pitch. The credit this team has, it deserves more. This team deserves a higher faith, it deserves credit, unshakeable support. If we don’t run, ok, but the team was trying its heart out. The belief should be there from the fans, belief and support that we need. If we hadn’t won we wouldn’t be group leaders, but I already warned that this team would be very difficult”.
A tough game: "It was a hard night’s work. That’s the second game without Messi because he didn’t play against Las Palmas. We didn’t have our best player for the second time and still got a second victory. It's always tough to overcome the kind of pressure that Bayer put on us tonight. They didn't allow us any easy possession or easy chances".
Injuries: "I don’t know why we have so many injuries at the moment. That’s life. The injury to Iniesta is terrible news, but these are thorns in our side that we have to shake off, we'll show everyone that we can overcome this".
Neymar: “The media created this erroneous idea that other players have to work harder now that Messi's out, so when he comes back they can relax? This is a team, everyone has to give 100% all the time".
Suarez: “Today we saw the attitude that all the players have. The changes gave us some freshness but everyone put in in right up to the final whistle. It’s the same in every game. It’s easier to destroy than it is to create. I’m delighted with the win, I’m going to eat dinner with my family then we go at it again”.
Mistake for 0-1: “We combine man for man with zonal marking. It’s not about pointing fingers. We all make mistakes. You have to focus on the positive, you don’t blame, you encourage. That’s what I almost always see”.
Leaders: “It’s going to be a challenge right up to the final game. This group is complicated despite what they said about it being a handy passage”.
From Marca.
I agree with Enrique, but i think here is that its not a players problem, letting aside the Alves-Piqué-Mathieu hideous form and still making it into XI, while Bartra has been impressive. The Masceran-Busquets pairing in midllefield with an average form Rakitic who make the midlefield loosing any sort of creativity...
The win itself doesnt hide the fact that Barça will suffer in the next months with such a display, sure we' re first of the league and in CL tough group. But silverwares are about consistence and if we cant win the games where we are unlucky in and when the rival is sharp and inform, then from a top team we could turn into a normal team until Messi return and the end of the ban. Mixed feelings between the lack of support they got and the frustration watching that game that the victory only calmed for a short period, without our lion, the two month will be very VERY LONG.