Narration and statistics This is how we live the game
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This Barcelona of Xavi Hernández has been playing badly since he took over the Bernabéu.
This cost him elimination in the Europa League and, after losing his third consecutive game at the Camp Nou, he even sees his second place compromised.
His executioner this time was Rayo Vallecano, who had only won in this stadium once in their history -22 years ago-, and who resisted as best they could to tie their permanence.
He even breathed when he saw how Díaz de Mera, referee of the match, disregarded a penalty from Catena to Gavi in the 89th minute. He was offside, and so it was pointed out.
The Barça bench assaulted the band.
Even a lighter fell.
An ugly outcome.
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Dembélé, who is ambidextrous, thought it would be a good idea to throw a rabona center.
It couldn't be a technical resource.
Not an ornament either.
It was just one more stroke of that absurd football that has also ended up defining both Barcelona and many of its players.
Despair has been lodged in the bowels of Frenkie de Jong.
To dominate the stage you must know how to stop and run, control and manage.
But the Dutchman stops only when required, accelerates when and where he shouldn't, and the collapse in his confidence is such that he can only manage his emotional state, much less the game.
Soccer is usually cruel in exposing personal decay.
So the Camp Nou, seeing that De Jong was unable to even turn around every time Óscar Valentín jumped on him, decided to point to his player.
Bad business for a player who was never characterized by his instinct for rebellion.
When he was substituted for Nico at game time, Frenkie lowered his head, moved it slowly from side to side, and locked himself in the locker room.
The ordeal demands solitude.
The problems of Xavi's Barcelona, in any case, have more to do with much more structural issues.
Even strictly blackboard.
Andoni Iraola, who until last Thursday in Cornellà had not won a game this 2022, got the Barça coach into a good strategic mess.
And that the Lightning coach did not have to squeeze the coconut too much.
He only had to short-circuit Ter Stegen's connection with Sergio Busquets in the throat by placing Nteka and Unai López in that area, and forcing Araujo to take responsibility for the creation with his wooden boot.
The usual when Gerard Piqué is not.
To the scarcity of football was added again the apathy of dawn.
This time it took seven minutes for Barcelona to concede the first goal against.
Isi Palazón, as nervous as he was delicate, turned to Sergio Busquets.
The Barça midfielder didn't even move before the rayista's manoeuvre, who cracked the defense with an inside pass that Álvaro García interpreted fabulously.
Dest didn't arrive in time, and the Rayo attacker was content with a control and a triumphant right hand to the goalkeeper's post.
Only Ter Stegen knows if in other times he could have done something more than throw himself on the ground knowing he was defeated.
From here, Rayo was able to bring the rhythm of the match to its interests.
The fans of the Camp Nou could well reproach goalkeeper Dimitrievski for giving account of three bags of pipes every time he was about to kick the goal.
But he should also wonder why Barcelona, crude and without any offensive structure, circulated the ball as if they were kicking a rock.
The one who was reluctant to let time pass was Gavi.
He rehearsed the capabilities of his right foot.
But his hopes crashed on the crossbar.
Ferran Torres, who went as unnoticed as Aubameyang, scored after picking up the rebound.
But he was offside.
That the main auctioneer of Xavi's team was Alba could not venture anything good.
At least something was happening there.
Quite the opposite of the other flank, where Dembélé turned his anarchism into another succession of grotesque episodes.
Xavi was being carried away by the demons.
And he changed as much as he could so that nothing would change.
He brushed Dest off.
Araujo went to the side so that Lenglet accompanied Eric in the center of the rear.
And with 20 minutes to go, the Barça coach had already activated his emergency plan, piling up attackers and trusting that faith, not play, would save the team from him.
A hammer blow from Memphis was rejected by Dimitrievski.
Adama and Dembélé sniffed out the tie, but the one who came closest was Pathé Ciss, who shot at the post.
It was the second time the Lightning had come close.
What difference does it make.
Barça neither manages nor knows how to get up.
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