rijkaard to rest almost the entire 1st team vs sevilla

[barcalove]

given all the talk that was going on about the sevilla game that was to take place on may 20th.. and how barca had complained that if it took place on that date, sevilla would have an unfair advantage due to 1st team players going to WC training camps. now that its rearranged, frank decides to rest almost the entire team :confused: why did they even bother?

whatever.. i didnt really care either way.. the title is wrapped up and if anyone got injured before the final i would've been extremely pissed.

The full squad

So, the 17 man squad that Rijkaard has named to travel to Andalusia is as follows: Valdés, Jorquera, Iniesta, Van Bommel, Oleguer, Gabri, Larsson, Ezquerro, Maxi, Rodri, Xavi, Belletti, Montañes, Sylvinho, Ludovic, Martos and Motta.

it'd be rather hilarious if barca managed to win this match.

possible formation?

jorquera
belletti oleguer rodri sylvinho
motta
xavi iniesta (or gabri if iniesta is rested)
maxi larsson ezquerro

maybe xavi wont start and van bommel will play instead.. who knows.. it'll still be fun to watch, lets hope henke can get a goal or two :) i have a feeling gabri might start since hes already said he wants to leave, frank might want to give him a full match given the circumstances. if xavi starts i doubt he'll finish the game.. and its a shame that barca B are involved in playoffs at the moment, as i'd have liked to have seen more of the new talents get a chance.. like verdu.

[jpm085]

Of Course they have to do that, There is a more important match. And it is good to see the talents play. They will develop faster.

BTW: Any chance of Jorquera to kick Valdes out of the first team next season.



Grtzz,

[Dogme]

It maybe Barcelona's second team effectively, but it's still a good side. I wouldn't be at all suprised if Barca win :D

Anyone would be better than Valdez IMO. Imagine how good Barca would be with Real's keeper :D

[jpm085]

It maybe Barcelona's second team effectively, but it's still a good side. I wouldn't be at all suprised if Barca win :D

Anyone would be better than Valdez IMO. Imagine how good Barca would be with Real's keeper :D


You better can imagine how bad Real would be without Iker.

[west501]

oh man, but what about the eto'o villa showdown?

[barcalove]

oh man, but what about the eto'o villa showdown?
according to the barca site, eto'o approached rijkaard about the sevilla match and asked if he thought he should play.. frank said "no, i'd prefer to rest you and keep you 100% fit for the final"... eto'o agreed.

[fcb_sandy05]

given all the talk that was going on about the sevilla game that was to take place on may 20th.. and how barca had complained that if it took place on that date, sevilla would have an unfair advantage due to 1st team players going to WC training camps. now that its rearranged, frank decides to rest almost the entire team :confused: why did they even bother?


i thought it was the other team in champions league contention that had a problem with it. Don't think barca asked for the fixture to be rescheduled.

[memberx]

interesting ! want to see how barca look like without ronnie deco eto puyol ...:D

[Fenianbhoy]

So whats the current status on Messi ? if he was near fitness and needed minutes on the pitch surely he'd be in the traveling squad. or is he a definite no-no for the CL Final.?

[barcalove]

So whats the current status on Messi ? if he was near fitness and needed minutes on the pitch surely he'd be in the traveling squad. or is he a definite no-no for the CL Final.?
its looking more like that every day.. theres a chance he might make it on the bench instead of someone like gabri/maxi/ezquerro, but he definitely wont be starting. rijkaard has to choose between giuly and larsson for the right side, pretty much everything else is set.

most likely valdes, puyol, marquez, belletti, gio, edmilson, deco, iniesta, ronnie, eto'o + larsson/giuly will be the starting lineup.

the only possible changes being, oleguer for belletti.. which may or may not be a good idea since henry tends to drift in from the left, meaning we probably need someone with pace there even tho ole is a solid defender. i highly doubt van bommel will start (he tends to drift forward alot and in a crucial match like this.. thats no good), and i doubt xavi will start.. iniesta has been far too good to not play him and edmilson is rijkaard's stopgap in midfield. definitely think hes going to be on the pitch the whole match, as he will play a huge role in breaking up any attacks and probably get a man marking assignment against someone, not sure who at the moment. probably not henry, as edmilson tends to take the playmaker not the striker (as he did so effectively against kaka in both legs vs milan).

i can see a combination of a swarming iniesta and a rocksolid edmilson seriously frustrating fabregas and making it quite difficult for arsenal to get moves started from central midfield. as always, barca can be caught out if they dont keep their focus.. but if they manage to stay on top of things i highly doubt arsenal will see many chances, and if they do... puyol to the rescue! :D

the second leg against villarreal, it was almost like henry wasnt on the pitch. villarreal did a great job of attacking (tho their finishing was awful) and breaking up the arsenal midfield.. granted arsenal played with 10 men behind the ball and henry loitering around by himself amongst the villarreal defence.. but still, if we manage to cut off the supply to titi, i see big problems for arsenal's offense.

[Fenianbhoy]

Oleguer at the start of the season didnt impress me much ,but as the season has went on hes a very clever defender less rash than belletti in my opionion, but Sure now even tho Xavi is getting back to full fitness ,Iniesta has to start this kid has been like a minature Zidane in his prime.

I'd also have Van Bommel in even tho as u say he drifts forward an likes to have pop shots at goal (he's due a few) if hes told to sit tight in deep midfield he can snuff out most of Arsenals attacks early on. but as i expect the final to fold out Barca will be doing most of the forward running and we will be needing someone to smack that ball when it drops 18-30 yds out from arsenals weak defensive clearances.

[barcalove]

Oleguer at the start of the season didnt impress me much ,but as the season has went on hes a very clever defender less rash than belletti in my opionion, but Sure now even tho Xavi is getting back to full fitness ,Iniesta has to start this kid has been like a minature Zidane in his prime.

I'd also have Van Bommel in even tho as u say he drifts forward an likes to have pop shots at goal (he's due a few) if hes told to sit tight in deep midfield he can snuff out most of Arsenals attacks early on. but as i expect the final to fold out Barca will be doing most of the forward running and we will be needing someone to smack that ball when it drops 18-30 yds out from arsenals weak defensive clearances.
heh you cant have it all.. you said you wanted iniesta in, then you said you wanted van bommel.. that means either deco or edmilson have to sit and that isnt going to happen. edmilson and deco are guaranteed starters, its iniesta's position in midfield that is under minor dispute, but i still think andres has a lock on it. hes far more of a team player than van bommel is, even tho i agree with you that v.bommel can help out in midfield.. its just that iniesta does it sooooo much better.

[Fenianbhoy]

Well id have Edmilson out in a snap. as when i thought about and have seen every Barca match this season Edmilson did'nt spring to mind that fast for me, but Van Bommel does offer more options than Edmilson imo as does Iniesta with his awareness and ability to get forward.

Maybe Edmilson does that less glamourous job in football ,of all the dirty work behinds the scenes ,but Van Bommel can also do that if asked & Iniesta & Deco can work of him to both be able to sharply spread the ball to Ronnie or Larrson/Guily on the flanks to find Eto

This will definetly be played like a home tie for Barca in Paris Neutral French(PSG) fans will defo be supporting Ronnie , so i reckon all the midfield could play its not as if Valdes will be needed ;)

[barcalove]

Well id have Edmilson out in a snap. as when i thought about and have seen every Barca match this season Edmilson did'nt spring to mind that fast for me, but Van Bommel does offer more options than Edmilson imo as does Iniesta with his awareness and ability to get forward.

Maybe Edmilson does that less glamourous job in football ,of all the dirty work behinds the scenes ,but Van Bommel can also do that if asked & Iniesta & Deco can work of him to both be able to sharply spread the ball to Ronnie or Larrson/Guily on the flanks to find Eto

This will definetly be played like a home tie for Barca in Paris Neutral French(PSG) fans will defo be supporting Ronnie , so i reckon all the midfield could play its not as if Valdes will be needed ;)
nah.. sorry man, dont mean to be rude but you are wrong :) van bommel cannot compare to edmilson. edmilson may not be able to step into van bommel's shoes and push forward and contribute to the attack, but van bommel certainly cannot do the job that edmilson does. he is capable, but hes just not focused enough, not as much of a team player.. doesnt work hard enough. edmilson knows his role and dedicates himself to it 1000%. trust me, i've paid attention to what he does for the team, they are better than they were last year because of him (and other things, but hes been a huge reason for me). one of the other things is directly related to edmilson being in the side, it allows rafa to play central defense with puyol.. creating one of the strongest cb pairings in the world imo. with edmilson just in front, dedicated to his task.. i just feel so much more confident in barca's defensive core.

trust me, taking edmilson out for van bommel.. will a) not help the team it would hurt it.. probably forcing iniesta deeper b) its just not going to happen ;) frank knows

[Fenianbhoy]

I bow to your knowledge on the Edmilson/VB choice , but i defo prefere to see Iniesta in the starting line-up over vb for the same position, but i think frank will choose his coutryman, ieven tho he is not as great on the ball as Iniesta , but offers more stability(muscle) in midfield.

[barcalove]

I bow to your knowledge on the Edmilson/VB choice , but i defo prefere to see Iniesta in the starting line-up over vb for the same position, but i think frank will choose his coutryman, ieven tho he is not as great on the ball as Iniesta , but offers more stability(muscle) in midfield.
i seriously hope that he goes with iniesta and i really think he will... surprisingly enough rijkaard doesnt tend to show much favouritism to his dutch players, especially van bommel. i've always had the feeling that he was glad to have van bommel to fill in gaps here and there with xavi out, deco suspended at times, edmilson injured or motta injured... so all in all, dont worry i expect to see iniesta in the final lineup (in my eyes, it would be a mistake for frank to not play him).

[Fenianbhoy]

Well bro i did say i wanted both in(Iniesta & Van Bommel) looks like they helped it on the way when chasing the game but for the main man Henke to change the game im over the fkn moon .God bless the Barca fans tonight.

[chauchey]

yah, both those subs made such a contribution. I though Larsson would have a big contribution, because he's leaving at the end of the year, and he knew it would be his last shot ever.
When you know ahead of time, that its your last time, and its your decision on top of that, you're better able to leave everything on the field. Congrats all around. To Arsenal as well. They played really good!

[Dogme]

Iniesta made a hell of a lot of difference when he came on. Barca looked a lot better and played better football. And yes, it was good game :D