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Comment: Ibrahimovic Breaks His Knockout Stage Duck, But Barcelona Still Struggle
Not an easy night for the Catalans.
Feb 23, 2010 5:55:00 PM
By Ewan Macdonald
One must hand it to Pep Guardiola. He certainly can call it.
When Barcelona fans saw their team's ball emerge next to that of Stuttgart in the draw for the Champions League encounter on Tuesday all those weeks ago, the mood was one of ceaseless jubilation. After all, the German side had struggled through a group containing such luminaries as Unirea and Rangers, and were to provide easy pickings for the reigning champions.
Trust Pep, ever the sober realist, to spoil the party. Prior to the match he told the official Barca website, "Scoring four goals against Racing [Santander] has merit but it’s not enough to compete with German football.
"We know this standard won’t be enough to put us through to the quarter-finals. We have to recover our good form."
Well, the Blaugrana didn't quite recover their good form, and certainly they can't say they're in the quarter-finals yet. But they did get that priceless away goal - and moreover, it was a very special one.
New Beginning?
For after a dreadful opening forty-five, Barca equalized thanks to none other than Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who finally, finally has netted a goal in the knockout stages of the Champions League.
It was no classic. Indeed, Jens Lehmann blocked the Swede's original effort, but it landed right at Ibra's feet for an easy tap-in. Yet the relief was clear to see on the striker's face, both after the goal and after the game. Indeed, he could even have had a second late on were it not for the shoulder/arm/unidentified body part of Cristian Molinaro.
Stuck In The Middle With You (Getty Images)
Critics are quick to call 'Ibra' a waste of money, and a bottler on the big stage, and one can still ask whether or not this match truly comprises a top-level contest. But in the round of sixteen - a stage at which competition winners (so Pep mournfully tells us) often meet their match - you need a forward to take a chance, and that is exactly what happened. Now Barca are in the driver's seat on the basis of an Ibra goal - exactly the situation that his critics have been daring him to provide.
Not Over
But it's important to stress that Stuttgart, on the basis of tonight's showing, can be confident too.
Gerard Pique was one of the few players to hold Barca's back line together in their dreadful first half but even he tailed off in the second. Meanwhile Rafa Marquez didn't even have a high point to tail off from; his was an evening of mediocrity and the occasional moment of the atrocious. No matter how much Barca produce up front, unless they can guarantee the presence of Dani Alves and a rejuvenated center-back line they run the risk of being torn apart by the likes of the excellent Timo Gebhart, who on the night outshone even Lionel Messi.
Yes, there's still everything to play for: even if there's a euphoria in the dressing room around Ibra's new found goal glory, Pep Guardiola still knows that better than anyone.
For the latest news and updates from Goal.com, follow our Twitter account!
When Barcelona fans saw their team's ball emerge next to that of Stuttgart in the draw for the Champions League encounter on Tuesday all those weeks ago, the mood was one of ceaseless jubilation. After all, the German side had struggled through a group containing such luminaries as Unirea and Rangers, and were to provide easy pickings for the reigning champions.
Trust Pep, ever the sober realist, to spoil the party. Prior to the match he told the official Barca website, "Scoring four goals against Racing [Santander] has merit but it’s not enough to compete with German football.
"We know this standard won’t be enough to put us through to the quarter-finals. We have to recover our good form."
Well, the Blaugrana didn't quite recover their good form, and certainly they can't say they're in the quarter-finals yet. But they did get that priceless away goal - and moreover, it was a very special one.
New Beginning?
For after a dreadful opening forty-five, Barca equalized thanks to none other than Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who finally, finally has netted a goal in the knockout stages of the Champions League.
It was no classic. Indeed, Jens Lehmann blocked the Swede's original effort, but it landed right at Ibra's feet for an easy tap-in. Yet the relief was clear to see on the striker's face, both after the goal and after the game. Indeed, he could even have had a second late on were it not for the shoulder/arm/unidentified body part of Cristian Molinaro.
Stuck In The Middle With You (Getty Images)
Critics are quick to call 'Ibra' a waste of money, and a bottler on the big stage, and one can still ask whether or not this match truly comprises a top-level contest. But in the round of sixteen - a stage at which competition winners (so Pep mournfully tells us) often meet their match - you need a forward to take a chance, and that is exactly what happened. Now Barca are in the driver's seat on the basis of an Ibra goal - exactly the situation that his critics have been daring him to provide.
Not Over
But it's important to stress that Stuttgart, on the basis of tonight's showing, can be confident too.
Gerard Pique was one of the few players to hold Barca's back line together in their dreadful first half but even he tailed off in the second. Meanwhile Rafa Marquez didn't even have a high point to tail off from; his was an evening of mediocrity and the occasional moment of the atrocious. No matter how much Barca produce up front, unless they can guarantee the presence of Dani Alves and a rejuvenated center-back line they run the risk of being torn apart by the likes of the excellent Timo Gebhart, who on the night outshone even Lionel Messi.
Yes, there's still everything to play for: even if there's a euphoria in the dressing room around Ibra's new found goal glory, Pep Guardiola still knows that better than anyone.
For the latest news and updates from Goal.com, follow our Twitter account!
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