Schalke 04 - Fc Barcelona 1 @ 2.5
When the quarter finals draw of the Champions League was made earlier this month, Barcelona could not help but smile when being paired with Schalke 04 because the German outfit appeared to be one of the easier teams that they could have been paired with
..The Blaugrana are probably not smiling now however, after a weekend result that brought official recognition of crisis at the club and a supporters' protest at training.It does take much to bring about talk of major problems at any of the top clubs in Spain, but at Camp Nou things are particularly delicate this season given the fact that the side one no silverware last year.Also, the performances are not living upto the expectations and that has caused outrage allied with the fact that off-field matters are finally beginning to have a real affect on it.
A domineering first half against Betis saw Frank Rijkaard's team take a two-goal lead into the break, but then a complete collapse allowed the home side to net three times in the second period and win the game.That alone would have been a major cause for concern but added to Barça's recent poor results, when rivals Real Madrid have failed, have meant that the club's fans believe that their team have missed a huge chance to win the title.FanPressureAll that coupled with accusations that players are feigning injury or out partying even after defeats finally came to a head when 200 fans turned up to let the squad know their feelings on Sunday.
It was a real outlet of emotion in a part of Spain where conservatism is the norm and those supporters will have to hope that they have given the players the gee up they needed to play better rather than shatter their confidence altogether.After losing to Betis, Rijkaard may have made one huge error as he stated that the team's second half performance was "inexplicable".
The last Barça coach to tell the press he did not know what had happened was Bobby Robson and the board at the time took that to mean that he had no idea how to change things.Robson may have won two cups in his only season at the helm, but it was losing the league to Real Madrid that saw him moved upstairs to become a scout as Louis van Gaal took over.
Live Uefa Champions League only at http://www.myp2p.eu/index.php?part=sports using Sopcast or TVAants
..The Blaugrana are probably not smiling now however, after a weekend result that brought official recognition of crisis at the club and a supporters' protest at training.It does take much to bring about talk of major problems at any of the top clubs in Spain, but at Camp Nou things are particularly delicate this season given the fact that the side one no silverware last year.Also, the performances are not living upto the expectations and that has caused outrage allied with the fact that off-field matters are finally beginning to have a real affect on it.
A domineering first half against Betis saw Frank Rijkaard's team take a two-goal lead into the break, but then a complete collapse allowed the home side to net three times in the second period and win the game.That alone would have been a major cause for concern but added to Barça's recent poor results, when rivals Real Madrid have failed, have meant that the club's fans believe that their team have missed a huge chance to win the title.FanPressureAll that coupled with accusations that players are feigning injury or out partying even after defeats finally came to a head when 200 fans turned up to let the squad know their feelings on Sunday.
It was a real outlet of emotion in a part of Spain where conservatism is the norm and those supporters will have to hope that they have given the players the gee up they needed to play better rather than shatter their confidence altogether.After losing to Betis, Rijkaard may have made one huge error as he stated that the team's second half performance was "inexplicable".
The last Barça coach to tell the press he did not know what had happened was Bobby Robson and the board at the time took that to mean that he had no idea how to change things.Robson may have won two cups in his only season at the helm, but it was losing the league to Real Madrid that saw him moved upstairs to become a scout as Louis van Gaal took over.
Live Uefa Champions League only at http://www.myp2p.eu/index.php?part=sports using Sopcast or TVAants
posted by Midnight Sun @ 15:38,
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