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ShareBarcelona's Woe: Failure to Adapt
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Most people watching 10-man Chelsea on Tuesday night will have assumed it was just a matter of time before Barcelona scored the goal they required, even after Lionel Messi's penalty miss. It seemed Barcelona, and coach Pep Guardiola, thought the same. As the minutes ticked by, the defending champions kept on attacking the same way, exchanging short passes on the edge of the area, seeking a way through the white wall. Only in the very final minutes did they change tack, and then it was to throw Carles Puyol forward and pump high balls into the box. It was not so much Plan B as Plan Z, the option of last resort.
Barcelona are so used to winning there was an inability to think on their feet and recognise the need to adapt their play. This is not to suggest they were wrong to stick to their passing-game principles, it is to argue...