Neymar and Messi. The IDEA was for that to be the partnership that takes Barcelona out of the tiki era and into the ATTACKING BEATDOWN territory. It didn't quite work out last season, hence why the shoulder-biter was brought in. But...they have not exactly gelled. And after the Elche (THEY SUCK) reconstruction, it seems that perhaps the Neymar-Messi link-up is the way to go rather than Cannibal coming in there and confusing thangs. (not a typo, I say THANG!)
Cannibal is a good player, to deny that would be foolish. He may eat people, and is a racist prick, but he knows how to play football. But it's not just about throwing a bunch of talented people and hoping that it will work. It's about picking the RIGHT people for the job. And the question is whether the Cannibal fits into this system...and that miss against Atletico was probably the thing that got him benched by Enrique.
Messi is a guy that can see a pass from anywhere and execute it, whilst Neymar has the intelligence, speed and movement to latch onto passes and finish them off. And all you really need are two KILLERS who are on the same wavelength and can deliver when it is needed.
There is also less confusion, more space and a little bit more understanding. Because Pedro still slots into that role previously taken by the Cannibal, but Pedro KNOWS Barcelona. Him being there give more freedom to Neymar and Messi as opposed to the Cannibal who likes to drop deeper, which restricts the amount of cheddar that Lionel can work with.
Going forward, it's good to have options. Messi on the wing against Atletico makes sense, but when they play more attacking teams who are not so defensive, the Messi-Neymar and Pedro concoction looks like it's a much better ticket to pull out.
And I'm out y'all....forty smacks.
HH
