Barcelona were humiliated last night (14th February) as they suffered a four-nil mauling against Paris St-Germain (Psg) in the Champions League Round of 16. But as we absorb this shock result, certain questions do need to be asked; not only what went wrong for Barca, but where does it leave them now?
What happened?
First of all the facts. As reported on the BBC, Barcelona were thrashed 4-0 away at PSG.
Not only was this a total humiliation but there is a real chance that for the first time since 2007, they may not reach the quarter-finals of the Champions League. As stated on Fotmob, goals from Angel Di Maria (who scored twice), Julian Draxler and Edinson Cavani were enough to seal victory. The result sent "shockwaves through Spain".
What went wrong for Barcelona?
Let us now focus on the first question. What must be stated is that this result was not simply a blip but an illustration of the problems currently with the Nou Camp outfit. Andy West from the BBC stated that there is a belief that the manager Luis Enrique does not have a plan B and that his only tactical plan is to "let Messi do what we wants and hope for the best".
There also seems to be a running criticism that the team is overly reliant on Barcelona's front three; Neymar, Suarez and Messi. The problem is that if the front three do not play to their best, the team "fails to prosper". But there are aspects that simply went wrong for Barcelona. Charlie Eccleshare in the Telegraph newspaper stated that, although PSG were "rampant", the major problem is the style of football being played by the Catalan side. Known for their "relentless pressing game" and their willingness to build attacks from "pretty much their own goal-line", this was not the case last night. It is clear that the football played by Enrique is more direct and a change from the famed styles played by Johan Cruyff and Pep Guardiola.
In addition, they seemed to lack the "stomach" or "the energy" to match the Parisian side.
Where does it leave Barcelona now?
With regards to the second question, it leaves questions for their players and manager. First of all with the players, it did show that after all, Lionel Messi is actually human. Although the team were poor, pundits Rio Ferdinand and Steven Gerrard stated that "all night he (Messi) was sloppy in possession, he looked a bit dejected and just looked bereft of ideas", as reported in the Daily Mail newspaper. And for their manager, Andy West stated that Enrique "will probably leave the Nou Camp at the end of the season". Not only is he out of contact at the end of the season, but with the distinct possibility that they will not either win the domestic league or the Champions League, it is probably the right time for Enrique to go.
It was a shocking defeat and illustrates just how far removed this current Barcelona team is from those in the past few years. Is this the beginning of the end for this great side? Only time will tell.