Barcelona's European curse continues
Win or win. There was no other way. To show Barça are back. To begin a new era. To bury the ghosts of the past. To continue to grow as a team. To give a boost to the project. To start a new future. To opt for another title. For Europe to see that the Blaugrana resurrection is already a reality. It was necessary to win at Old Trafford to move forward in the Europa League and, above all, it was necessary to beat Manchester United to recover some of the prestige lost during so many years of disappointments and failures. And, in addition, they had to win immersed in the deafening media noise generated by the 'Negreira case'. To isolate themselves from the campaign of harassment and demolition against Barça in general and against Laporta in particular, in order to offer the best footballing version. It was necessary to win to scare away all the ghosts of the past. We had to win to dream.
But it was not possible to win. Or they didn't know how to win. Barça competed very well in the first half, but collapsed in the second. It is not yet a complete team. It is still under construction. And this new European disappointment is a hard setback to the illusion that the project led by Xavi is generating. Two consecutive years losing in the group stage of the Champions League. Two consecutive years being eliminated in the first rounds of the Europa League. Too hard for a fan base that wants, that needs, to believe again. This Barça, undisputed leader in La Liga, 8 points ahead of the same Madrid that humiliated Liverpool, does not have enough power to fight with the big continental teams. Maybe next season will be the definitive one. Maybe...
In the first half Barça played a perfect game. Not brilliant, but flawless. A very serious game. Playing with intensity and taking absolute control. In addition, they found themselves with the 'gift' of an absurd penalty that Lewandowski took advantage of to put the team 1-0 up on the scoreboard. Everything had gone perfectly and the Blaugrana went into the break with the satisfaction of having done their duty. Perhaps too much satisfaction, because they started the second half without tension and Manchester United did not forgive them, levelling the game after a serious error of general lack of concentration in defence. At 1-1 it was all over again.
Barça had to recover from the blow, get their act together and look for the winning goal and qualification. But it was the English who began to dominate the game while the Blaugrana were running out of energy. A further distraction led to a 2-1 lead that was impossible to come back from. Defeat was inevitable. And the European disappointment, yet another one, too. La Liga and the Copa remain. We must go for them. With maximum ambition. With pride. This Barça, under construction, needs titles.
