Barcelona narrowly won El Clasico 2-1. With a decisive goal scored by Frank Kessie in the ninety-second minute.
The La Liga title will almost certainly go to the Catalans this year. Barcelona was the better, the more generous team throughout the entire derby, but the match was just a shadow of the El Clasico of yesteryear. As is, in fact, La Liga football in recent seasons.
The spanish press is pumping up the young players but they don’t and won’t have the class of yesterday. And unfortunately, Benzema or Modrici or Lewa are not immortal and their time is rather passed.
Real Madrid is a better team than Barcelona, Don Carlo Ancelotti is at all times of the day and night a much better coach than the young Xavi, and yet Barcelona is going unabated towards the title. Despite the scandals catching up with it – money problems, refereeing issues, recent history. How and why? And what does this mean for bettors?
Xavi has created a purely pragmatic line-up. They win every game on the edge, but they win it. Real lose important points, often after silly mistakes. It’s simply not Madrid’s year in La Liga and they’ll have to console themselves with the Champions League again.
Simeone’s copy
Barcelona is not yet a team that can win European trophies, as proof that it has already packed its bags even from the Europa League. In Spain, however, Xavi, like a good Catalan, has made the most of every match.
Barcelona doesn’t play nice, they play for the result, they play for a goal more than their opponents, and Xavi is becoming the newer version of Simeone. A copy, not at all pale, of the Argentinian who found the recipe for the perfect lock at Atletico Madrid (it will be interesting in which direction Atletico will go from the summer, after parting with Diego Simeone, the most successful coach in its history).
Sure, a La Liga title so early in his career is an achievement. On the other hand, the way Barcelona wins this title is in contrast to its history. This team has been La Liga’s champion team for at least forty years. Maradona, Figo, Ronaldo, Rivaldo, Ronaldinho, Messi, Iniesta, Xavi himself have all played here. This is where tiki taka was played. From Barcelona came the future. And now Barcelona’s football is efficient but nothing more. In the end, this is a downfall.
But we’re more interested in results, and on results you can confidently bet on Barcelona because it will keep winning by the narrowest of margins.
