A bizarre match at Anoeta. FC Barcelona loses away to Real Sociedad. This includes Lewandowski’s disallowed goal, the disastrous performance of Hansi Flick’s team and the best match Blue and White in season.
Barca completely devoid of their flow
The first half of the match played by the LaLiga leader should be considered as a sign of frustration and a complete loss of rhythm. It could be expected that Imanol Alguacil’s team, which is able to perfectly prepare a plan for a specific rival, would cause problems for Barcelona today. However, few people probably expected that it would be so noticeable from the perspective of Hansi Flick’s team. Even in the absence of Lamine Yamal, who is recovering from a bruised ankle suffered in the match against Red Star.
ADVERTISING
First of all, the Pride of Catalonia functioned at a snail’s pace today, comparing their game against Sociedad to their standard performances. The distribution of the ball in the attacking third and decision-making in this area of the pitch were often poor. There were no long-range shots when space was created and promising actions were often spoiled by player misunderstandings. It was as if the players’ “on-pitch navigation” had suddenly gone haywire, which meant they were often late or absent where they should have been. It is possible that the picture of the guests’ game would have been slightly different if Robert Lewandowski’s goal in the 15th minute had been recognized. However, according to VAR’s decision, the Pole was literally offside by the toe of his boot (although, to be honest, from the available shots it’s hard to say whether it was actually his foot that was the most forward).
Great match by Real Sociedad
Barca’s failure could not be reduced solely to this situation. Real Sociedad was great at dynamically transporting the ball into the open space right after taking it over and creating dangerous opportunities time and time again. This is how, in the 33rd minute, Sheraldo Becker beat Inaki Pena, who could have handled the Surinamese’s shot better. By the way, it was the first goal of the Txuri-Urdin striker this season and probably his best performance in a long time for the team from San Sebastian.
To top it off, the hosts still had a few good chances to increase their lead before the break. The best of them was undoubtedly Mikel Oyarzabal. The captain of the Basque team received a real “frying pan” from Becker and missed from a distance of several meters. The 27-year-old himself couldn’t believe his own ineffectiveness.
Barca is in trouble and rescue is nowhere to be found
After such a nasty half by Flick’s players, one would expect some positive change in their game. Meanwhile, nothing like this happened. Today FC Barcelona was simply in a negative trance from which it could not get out. Even Dani Olmo, who always guarantees a positive impulse, was unable to achieve anything from the front today.
Real Sociedad blocked the goal expertly. Barca did not have a single (!) shot on target between Alex Remiro’s posts. A bizarre situation when the hosts wasted subsequent good opportunities, even begging for a favorable result. Today, however, Blaugrana was in such weakness that even the highly ineffective team from San Sebastian managed to achieve a modest 1-0 until the end.
