BARÇA CONCEDED GOALS AGAIN IN GETAFE
The Achilles' heel of FC Barcelona: they have conceded goals in the last 9 league matches
Published:19/01/2025 - 01:10h
Updated:19/01/2025 - 08:10h
FC Barcelona could not get past a draw on Saturday in Getafe (1-1) despite starting with a goal from Pedri. For the culés, it was the ninth consecutive league match conceding at least one goal
Keeping their goal clean is becoming an almost impossible mission for Iñaki Peña this season in LaLiga. On Saturday, FC Barcelona stumbled again at Getafe's ground (1-1) in what was the ninth consecutive league match in which Hansi Flick's team has conceded at least one goal. The streak began on matchday 12, when the culés defeated Espanyol in Montjuïc (3-1).
Since then, Barça has conceded 12 goals. Undoubtedly, the defense is the Achilles' heel of a team that arrived at the Coliseum Alfonso Pérez with four consecutive victories between the Copa del Rey and the Supercopa de España, scoring 16 goals, with only 3 against. The defense did its job against Barbastro (0-4) and Athletic Club (0-2), both matches with Wojciech Szczesny in goal.
Barça cannot always rely on high-scoring wins
In this sense, it is clear that, looking ahead to the decisive phase of the 2024-25 season, the team needs to make adjustments at the back. The offense has been the team's strong point throughout the season (52 goals in favor in 20 matches), but you cannot always win by a landslide. Barça started with three victories in LaLiga relying on experience and with two comebacks (2-1 against Valencia, Athletic, and Rayo), but after that, they have only added one narrow victory in the tournament (1-0).
As it stands, the team has not managed to keep a clean sheet since the rout at Santiago Bernabéu (0-4 against Real Madrid) on October 26. The streak is too long for a Barcelona that has already conceded 23 goals, 3 more than they conceded in the entire 2022-23 season, the last league won by the culés. Next Sunday, against Valencia, the azulgrana team will also seek to break a streak of three consecutive home defeats in the tournament.
The comeback will be much harder if Madrid beats Las Palmas this Sunday, but there is no choice but to start a winning streak to fight for the title. The key, clearly, lies in regaining defensive solidity. "Winning a league is the hardest thing there is, but it is not decided. There is still a lot to play for and we will fight until the end. We have added one point, we have lost two; but we must look forward," argued Hansi Flick in the post-match press conference.
