Osasuna 2-Barcelona 2 | New age, same mistakes

Gavi’s courage, Nico’s opportunism and Abde’s impudence were not enough for Xavi’s Barcelona to start the much-heralded new era with a victory in Pamplona. Barça drew two at El Sadar in a typical match between mid-table teams after in the final minutes of the duel the Blaugrana team was diluted again before the push of the rival and Chimy Ávila did justice by tying the game after the Blaugrana stepped back in the final stretch of the game.

The novelty of the new age was the return of Umtiti, that appeared as the headline in El Sadar from the same catacombs of the Camp Nou where it seemed that someone had forgotten it, hoping that when the workers arrived that one day or another will begin the construction of the stadium they would find it and sand they will ask that of “and this, where do we put it?”.

In addition to Umtiti, a presence that once again relegated Eric García to the substitution without there seems to be a solid explanation, Luuk de Jong also appeared as a tip. In his case, it is possible to firmly affirm “it is what there is”, because before the avalanche of injuries there was nothing else pointed.

Playing with a cruyffista system of three defenders and many midfielders, andl Barça once again entrusted three recruits: Abde, Gavi and Nico to produce their football in the face of the general resignation of the rest of the team’s officer corps. From the association between Gavi, who in each game gives what he has and what he does not have, seasoned with an image that highlights his untied boots and losing a shin guard, and Nico was born the first goal for Barça. Master pass of the Andalusian and definition of the Galician, who made his debut as a scorer in Pamplona as Anso or ilaix did in his day.

But Barcelona’s fledgling was noticed when two minutes after scoring his first goal after three games without seeing the door, David García finished off completely free of marking a lateral foul that Ter Stegen could not reach.

From there, the game became a nonsense of turnovers by both teams. No one dominated the game except for Abde, who was a tormentor for her markers. In the first half he took four fouls from the Navarrese and forced two yellow cards. In painful contrast, on the opposite side, Dembélé was once again offering another portion of nothing between bread. If for Xavi the Frenchman is potentially the best winger in the world, Abde must seem like the reincarnation of Garrincha.

And it was precisely Abde who broke the match at the beginning of the second half after culminating a counter-attack from Barça that Dembélé led on the right wing, but preceded by clear hands from Busquets in the Barcelona area. Hands that were not considered as penalties arriving after a very close volley from Gavi. Busquets had his hand in a natural position and Barça did not take advantage of that action. The referee let the play continue and Abde ended up shooting the second goal to the protests of the locals. Another young man who signed up for the scorer baptism of El Sadar.

Sweep away watching the very complicated game, he threw all the meat on the grill and took out Chimy, Brasanac and Budimir to go on to play with three centrals seeking to intimidate a Barça that the final minutes seem eternal. Xavi responded by withdrawing a melted Nico to give entry to Mingueza, with which Barça returned to dig with four centrals.

That step back from Barça, added to the daring of Osasuna had a prize for the rojillos, that tied with five minutes to go when Chimy finished off a rebound on the edge after a corner kick.

A goal that did justice to what happened on the pitch. The path to the new era is going to require much more than the contribution of young people, which in cases like Gavi’s is enormous. He needs the so-called stars of the team to do their part as well.