Barcelona’s skipper Raphinha told ESPN that the main reason of Barcelona’s recent poor form is fatigue.
Barça vs Atlético : The Ultimate SHOWDOWN
Barça were in hot form winning 11 games out of 12 in La Liga, but due to recent dip in form they have only managed to win one of the last six, missing out potential league lead.
Atlético on the other hand are in good form with a six match winning streak in La Liga and are equaled to Barcelona on the League Table.
Raphinha Speaks Out: His Take
When Raphinha was questioned via ESPN about Barcelona’s dip in form, he stated:
“It’s down to us, We have been bad. We have dropped our level. Maybe we have lacked concentration in moments and it’s cost us.”
“And tiredness as well. If I tell you we weren’t tired in certain games when we dropped points, I would be lying. So tiredness I think is the biggest factor, but we have also dropped our level.”
Raphinha clearly mentions the main reason is fatigue and this is quite justified as the number of games in calendar year is much more than previous seasons. Barcelona’s lack of depth and injuries mean Flick relies on the usual squad and stays away from taking rotational risks.
The Number of Minutes- Quite Questionable !
Raphinha is among the the 10 players to have played over 1500 minutes this season, highlighting the heavy workload. Dani Olmo, who also suffered from short spell of injuries, follows with 790 minutes, while no other player from the squad exceeded the 700 minutes mark.
Only Iñigo Martínez (2,046 minutes) and Jules Koundé (1,975 minutes), are among players who have played the most minutes in 2024.
Whats NEXT ?
Despite, the number of minutes and the fatigues suffered, Barcelona’s skipper backs the club to get through the difficult path and stated if the players focus and sharpen, they can be back on track and show their quality like in matches against Real Madrid and Bayern.
In my opinion, fatigue is a key factor as the number of games are too much and there is an average of 3 games a week, which was not normal before. This is due to the Champions League new format, despite many big names being against it, there is no solution yet. One of the solutions could be, if the team increases squad depth by being active during the transfer market. A recent example of this is with Chelsea FC, they were criticized on influx of many players, but they are dealing well, as they are not facing major fatigue or injury issues. This makes the squad rotation easier and manager has plethora of options to work with.