Among the many problems facing the 2021-2022 edition of Barcelona, the lack of goals from the wings was one of the most worrying. Especially regarding the right wing of the attacking trident, with names such as Adama Traoré (no goals in 17 matches) and Ousmane Dembelé (2 goals in 32 matches) having almost no contact with the opposition net.
Aubameyang he responded as a central striker (13 goals in 23 appearances) and on the left there were better contributions from players such as Memphis (13 out of 38), ansu (6 out of 15) and Fernando Torres (7 out of 26), beyond that exCity wasted too many clear choices: in La Liga he scored 4 goals, as opposed to his 7.2 expected goals. That -3.2 spread was the third worst among the 617 players in the tournament.
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When you imagine a new Barca much more dangerous and sharp in attackit is easy to escape Robert Lewandowski as the main reason for the illusion. the german one is synonym of target and in a leading and attacking team like Xavi’s, certainly with responses similar to those he used to at Bayern. However, the Catalans’ problem in 2021-22 was not necessarily a lack of goals in general (they added 68 in 38 La Liga games), but rather dependents that were nominally specific and the small threat they produced from certain specific areas of space.
It is where his name raphinha comes to light and starts to look like a signing very well targeted by the Catalan leadership, beyond 58 million euros they had to pay for it. Too much value? Perhaps not so much, beyond the complex financial situation of the institution.
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The Brazilian already does owner of that right wing of Barca’s attack and he has converted in his first two appearances: the win over Inter Miami and this Saturday’s win over Real Madrid. And beyond being friendly, the crack gaucho flashes, are already exciting the culé. From his good definition in the area in the goal against the Americans, to his excellent shot from the middle against Madrid, capitalizing on Militão’s mistake at the start.
Raphinha’s first start #The classic.
Okay. pic.twitter.com/gNlaWaSbOh– FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) July 24, 2022
Beyond the one-on-one imbalance and what it can contribute to the game in question, Rafinha has something that his predecessors at Barca did not: goals and weight in or around the area, playing with a changed foot and using the very good shot with the left. The same that saw him score 11 goals in the last Premier League competition against a bottom-placed team like Leeds (17th).
The difference with last season’s predictable and repetitive offense is remarkable. And in a front with other towering threats in the likes of Ansu and Lewandowski (plus all the variations on the bench), Xavi’s opponents will have to be on their toes throughout the 90 minutes, regardless of which sector Barca go into. Friendly or not, the Blaugrana team is already wearing one clearly superior to the flawed version of 2021-2022 and European elite is again within reach.
