Barcelona 1-1 Athletic Bilbao: Five talking points

Athletic Bilbao celebrate their first trophy in 31 yearsAfter Athletic Bilbao landed a convincing knockout blow in round one of the Supercopa, mauling Barcelona 4-0 in Basque country, the return leg looked an easy task and, being the composed crop they are, Athletic made no mistake in affirming their grip on the Spanish season’s first trophy. Denied by a sturdy Bilbao back-line again and again, it took Barcelona until the brink of half time to draw first blood in leg number two, after Lionel Messi found space in the box to collect a chested ball from Luis Suarez, before dispatching past Iraizoz.The visitors’ equaliser was sandwiched between two sending offs; Gerard Pique first seeing red for hurling a barrage of verbal abuse at the linesman, before Kike Sola was dismissed for a rash challenge in the dying embers of the match. Aritz Aduriz capitalised on Piqué’s absence to bag the equaliser and end the game as a contest.Although it was never going to be decisive, this was a match rife with controversy, concerns and great football, so here are five talking points I picked up on from the game...

#1 Pique\'s dismissal nailed Barca coffin shut

Gerard Pique's red card was a hammer blow for the Catalans

In a game where the flames of victory only dwindled as the clock ticked on, it was difficult for Barcelona to maintain a positive mindset and continue pressing while holding strong at the back. One man though contributed at both ends of the field and was eager to fill any void of blank grass to keep the Catalan fire burning – Gerard Pique.

Squaring up to the linesman in a burst of rage, Pique saw a straight red for his confrontation and this all but relinquished Barca’s faint grip on the tie. The Spanish centre-half’s excellent reading of the game meant Aduriz was silenced for the first hour or so, but his departure left a yawning chasm in the heart of the Barcelona defence which the first leg’s hattrick hero utilised to snatch Bilbao’s equaliser to put the game to bed once and for all.

Not only did the dismissal leave Enriqué short of options at the back, but there were fewer outlets at the opposite end of the field too. Piqué mimicked Bilbao’s workhorse attitude to cover yards in every department and often burst a gut to get into the box and provide another attacking target. If the tie wasn’t long out of reach before, then the Spanish international seeing red certainly iced the Bilbao cake, as Barca were left needing to chase a very energetic Basque squadron that were brimming with confidence and held a healthy lead.

#2 The Valverde Affect

Valverde is a calming presence for Bilbao

It’s fair to say Athletic’s boss Ernesto Valverde has been around a fair bit. A footballing career spanning fifteen years, in which he played most notably for Barcelona and Bilbao themselves, the 51-year-old has taken charge of seven different clubs in his managerial tenure and is currently in his second spell at the Basque club. Embedding incredible composure and calmness, the way Valverde handled the situation tonight was top class.

Now most of you would say that the most obtuse footballing brain would be able to set a side up to defend a four-goal cushion but, against Barcelona, nothing is ever easy. Athletic played with a back-line of practically six, with the full-backs Mikel Balenziaga and Eneko Boveda bolstering the solid foundations of Aymeric Laporte and Xabier Etxeita through the centre, which made space for Oscar De Marcos and Markel Susaeta to track back and cover the flanks. This game plan was perfect in both practice and execution and frustrated Barcelona’s forwards for the most part of the game.

Trailing 1-0 at the break, it would not have been a surprise to see Athletic spiral into meltdown, especially as the Barca blow came so close to the half-time whistle. Valverde is a very collected character though and no doubt relaxed the group before they returned to the pitch. His thought process is simple and he didn’t panic and switch the game plan at any point and Los Leonés played out from their bank of six and were incredibly cautious in possession.

#3 Should Pedro have played given media speculation?

In parallel with the De Gea and Sergio Ramos sagas, Pedro’s proposed switch to Manchester United has caught the eye as one of the most compelling transfer stories of the Summer, yet he has still found himself immersed in Barcelona’s pre-season action. Had it been at the expense of Neymar then I’m sure Pedro would have his reservations about leaving Camp Nou but, being implemented as the injured Brazillian’s replacement, Pedro remains out of favour and this is surely not good for him mentally.

Handed a golden opportunity to open the scoring, Pedro miscued one inside the opening ten minutes, before his air shot in the latter stages of the first half raised questions about his serenity and perhaps unearthed that the media speculation is finally taking its toll. Personally, I don’t think he was in the right frame of mind to play, nevermind start, and the likes of Rafinha, Munir El Haddadi or Sandro Ramírez could have been more prudent choices for Luis Enriqué.

Grabbing a goal early was such an important factor for the home side and Pedro had the chance to do so but fluffed it, when a player more certain about their future could have and most likely would have found the net and set a different tone to a game. He’s a fantastic player and undoubtedly difficult to leave out but this saga needs to reach its conclusion soon so Enriqué has a settled crop to pick from.

#4 Barca need Pique partner

While Gerard Piqué’s walk to the tunnel practically sparked confirmation of a first Athletic Bilbao trophy in 31 years, the men alongside him were more the villains in the game and, following a calamitous first-leg display at the back, Barcelona’s defenders are not doing themselves any favours at the moment.

Since Carlos Puyol hung up his boots, the Catalan defence has always looked like holding the missing piece to the jigsaw. It seems ludicrous to point the finger at any part of the Barcelona frame following their collection of four pieces of silverware last term, but the defence looks vulnerable and, had it not been for a world-class midfield leaving it seldom exposed last season, then it may have been an area addressed a lot sooner.

Jeremy Matthieu was very poor at clearing his lines tonight and drifted between the centre and left-hand side, not really aware of his position on the night. If not for Javier Eraso’s wayward shooting boots then he could have presented Bilbao with their first a lot earlier than Aduriz’s eventual opener. The Frenchman seemed dazed when Piqué left his side and was simply shambolic. Javier Mascherano was another frequently caught out of position, lingering with his alternative holding midfield role, while Marc Bartra and Thomas Vermaelen were a comedy show on Friday night.

A group of world beaters needs structure at the back and the more this defence is revealed, the more cracks will start to show.

#5 Kike the red blot on Bilbao copy book

The scene was set for a triumphant roar of euphoria to be released come the end of the final ten minutes of the game and credit about the hard-work, urgency and discipline of a resilient Bilbao was to filter out, only for Kike Sola to lose his head with a poorly judged foul with minutes left on the clock. The red card was the correct decision, but it somewhat tainted the end to a very whole-hearted, convincing 180 minutes from last season’s Copa del Rey runners-up.

Valverde’s side was set-up on foundations of slick movements and disciplined organisation. Every player on the pitch played their part, pressed high and covered lots of ground, but Kike’s short lived spell on the pitch did show that not every Athletic player has this mentality drummed into them. His challenge embodied laziness to not keep on his feet and tackle and this did not fit with the Bilbao strategy.

Bilbao showed two sides to their game across the two legs. The first demonstrated their dynamic creativity going forwards and unrivalled positivity as a team; they kept going and practically assured the trophy was theirs on day one. At Camp Nou, they tried every trick in the book from De Marcos holding the ball in the corner flag to Iraizoz shielding the ball with his body to stop Barca from immediately resuming play after the opener – the red card was not to the script but was merely a minor blot.