Adama stops before Dembélé's impulse

• Ida Barcelona survives torture in Frankfurt

• Xavi "Here we have to win and play well, a 1-0 in the 90th minute doesn't work. That's how we Catalans are"

• Europa League All crosses

Both the employees of the Ciutat Esportiva Joan Gamper and some of those who live in senior management offices agree on the same argument.

Beyond the improvement of the game, the preparation of the matches and the marked change in dynamics -now games are won that would always have been lost before-, the main change they notice in the squad is emotional.

, in just over five months, has made footballers feel part of a "family" - this is how the coach defines it.

The coach has helped this by ensuring that there is no player who does not feel important.

He meets them at the office, he shows them individualized videos with specific problems and solutions and, above all, he uses his media interventions to extol them.

«

It will be important”, Xavi continues repeating, trying to shelter the winger, already in doubt.

Born a few meters from the Camp Nou 26 years ago, Adama, who saw a career at Barcelona that began at the age of eight interrupted to grow for seven seasons in the Premier League (Aston Villa, Middlesbrough and Wolverhampton), returned last winter to the azulgrana club.

And he did so convinced that he would no longer have to leave.

Future

On loan until June 30, Barcelona secured a purchase option of 33 million euros.

An affordable price as long as Wolverhampton decides to keep

(30 million), also represented by

.

What the Barça leaders did not expect is that the door would be opened to the renewal of

, who has gone from being expendable to becoming a fundamental piece .

Where Adama should shine, the French winger does.

“But Adama will be important.

I have it very clear, ”Xavi continues.

However, the incidence of the youth squad, both in the game and in his participation in the team, has been slowed down.

He has not yet seen door.

And he provided four assists as a Barcelona player in his first five games (Atlético, Espanyol, and two more at the Diego Armando Maradona stadium against Napoli on February 24, nearly two months ago).

That premiere against Atlético at the Camp Nou is long gone, where

suffered Cain's to stop him and the fans rubbed their eyes at his dry dribbles and his runs to the baseline, always with the ball, almost never into space .

Although Adama's role in the League has been fading - just 31 minutes in the last five games - it is in the Europa League where Xavi insists on keeping his confidence.

In fact, the winger from L'Hospitalet has been a starter in the five matches that Barcelona has played in the tournament this season, although his performance has been irregular both in Istanbul against Galatasaray and, above all, in the first leg of the quarterfinals against the Eitracht.

In both duels he was replaced after the break by Dembélé.

The entry of the Frenchman, in addition, was decisive a week ago for Barcelona to start a long-suffering draw (1-1) at the Waldstadion in Frankfurt.

The percentage of dribbles completed by Adama in the Europa League is high (85%) and constant (4.4 per game).

Figures that do not agree with his influence on the offensive game.

He has only been able to complete 0.6 crosses per game (12%) and barely averages 0.2 shots on goal.

Barcelona is playing this Thursday for access to the semifinals of the Europa League against an Eintracht that they could not hurt on the sides.

In fact, his two best pieces were Serbian

, Adama's pair, and

, a scorer who gave

the night .

Yesterday, Xavi added another difficulty to the challenge: «We have the obligation to win and play well.

A 1-0 in the 90th minute is not worth us. This is Barça."

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