Setién bet on the midfielders in his debut in Champions

The FC Barcelona premièred this Tuesday the eighth of final of Champions League with a demanding visit to the Napoli in Saint Paolo. The Catalans confronted to an examination of level to domicile against an irregular but dangerous opponent against the big, and his clash turned into a tactical battle that remained decided by the details. So much Gennaro Gattuso like Quique Setién bet by the blackboard to look for the victory.

In the chessboard that went the coliseo 'azzurri', the Cantabrian played it to him with midfield players. In spite of that the 4-3-3 is the training that better results has given him and to that Ansu Fati arrived rested by the rotations, the ex of the Real Betis modified the guion. Sergio Busquets and Ivan Rakitic apuntalaban a medullary in which Arturo Vidal (right, between the half tip and the extreme) and Frenkie of Jong (left) enjoyed of greater freedom.

The strategy of which Ernesto Valverde threw hand in occasions far of the Camp Nou had remarkable differences with the one of the extremeño, more adherent of the order that the one of Santander preferred to break. His consign so that the system worked base in the mobility, so much of the balloon, with a fast and precise circulation, as of his pupilos, that have to look for gaps and treat of descolocar to the rival defenders.

The problem for the míster is that, by injuries and defects of planning, were missing him leading. The queen of the game was Leo Messi, that practically turned into another creator, and this isolated partly to Antoine Griezmann, the only reference without the lesionados Luis Suárez and Ousmane Dembélé and with the one of Guinea Bissau expecting his turn in the bench. And it is that the staff does not offer more answers, further of some member of a filial that neither has more than enough of attackers.

The plan of Setién went out half, because the Barça contained the scarce charged of the Napoli but fit goal in the first clear occasion. Precisely, the defensive cracks that the trainer expected to avoid sold him in an action in which Piotr Zielinski ate to Gerard Hammered and to Junior Firpo, and after which arrived a centre that in the right did not reach Nélson Semedo and any of the midfield players hit to cover.

Ter Stegen Saves to a Barça atascado

Only some chipazos in the second half saved to some Barcelona to which was missing them depth, since Messi was too alone until Arthur gave something of clarity to the game. After jumping the Brazilian to the lawn, Busquets lit with a vertical pass and rompedor, Semedo corresponded him with a desmarque to the back of the defence and his pass of the death finished it to pleasure the desconectado Griezmann.

In spite of the presence of several todoterrenos, Marc-André ter Stegen went back to be key for the Barça, that complicated going out of the pressure of a Napoli to the that did not like him the 1-1. Lorenzo Insigne and José Alley tested him by low, and the one of Mönchengladbach did not disappoint frustrating first to the napolitano and afterwards to the grenadian, that shot against the 'doll' when it remained hand manually with the German.

It will be necessary to see if the drops force to Setién to recover the three attackers, or if, by the contrary, prefers to follow with his reservations. Martin Braithwaite only is available for LaLiga, but the sanctions to Busquets and Arturo Vidal leave alone to Of Jong, the own Arthur and Rakitic. The solution could go through add to Riqui Puig to the mix, or for recovering a tip with Messi, Griezmann and Ansu Fati.