When a team drifts as it happens to Barcelona, a team that goes to the canvas at the first blow of the opponent, is when footballers look for a leader on the field of play. That leader, to this day, does not exist on the pitch, on the bench or in the box.
Among the players the feeling that each one makes war on his own it is obvious. Young people are left out of the equation for obvious reasons and among veterans there is no consensus. The discussion that took place between Piqué and Busquets, two of the captains, on the Wanda Metropolitano pitch is the best proof.
On the bench, the coach is a figure that, no matter how much confirmation he receives at the last minute, is more than indicated. His credibility is low before his players, whom he does not hesitate to publicly criticize, whether they are sacred cows or young people like Nico, 19, pointed out in the press room by the Dutchman. The figure of the president Joan Laporta It should be the one that leads the entity, but the sensation of improvisation also affects a board that is handcuffed by the dramatic situation inherited from the Bartomeu board.
In the absence of leadership, the message is confusing. Starting with the box, where Laporta goes from wanting to dismiss the coach to confirming it publicly in a matter of hours. A speech that comes to blush when Vice President Rafael Yuste declares that “we have never considered dismissing Koeman” 24 hours after the technician himself took his dismissal for granted in the press room saying that “I have eyes and ears, they haven't told me anything, but I know what leaks out.”
Conflicting messages are also sent in the dressing room. Even Gerard Piqué, the only authorized voice in the booth, has been able to say a week ago that “I'm not here to be second or third” to affirm on Saturday after the game that “We can spend three hours playing and we would not score a goal, the thing is very bad. Now it's time to rest and take advantage of the break ”.
