Another game, another two points dropped.
After starting the 2024/25 La Liga season like a steam train, Barcelona have hit a bumpy patch that’s seen them drop points against Real Sociedad, Celta Vigo, Las Palmas and now Real Betis.
It’s hard to argue against Betis not being good value for the point, but that’s a side issue.
The fact is that the Catalans have dropped 10 points in those four games, and four of those have been dropped from winning positions.
4 - No team has dropped more points from winning positions than FC Barcelona in LaLiga since the start of November 2024 (4, the same as Osasuna). Fatigue. pic.twitter.com/DEBXzce8lL
— OptaJose (@OptaJose) December 7, 2024
Against Betis there appeared to be a clear indication that some players were being saved for the Champions League encounter, hence earlier than usual substitutions.
It’s also true that Barça went ahead when a number of starters had already been subbed off, and indeed, the second goal was scored by a sub in Ferran Torres.
Therefore, it’s absolutely within their power to win games when seemingly not at full strength.
What’s unforgivable is the routine slacking off towards the end of matches, and it’s becoming too much of a feature now to be considered mere coincidence.
Seeing out games is all well and good if you’re in control of them and still working the opposition.
Scoring another goal late on might not necessarily be the No.1 priority, but the control and handling of the final moments in matches has to be paramount.
Taking one’s eye off the ball, literally and metaphorically is always not going to end well, and so it proved again on Saturday when a static Barca defence stood and ball watched, and allowed the Verdiblancos to claim a share of the spoils.
Real Betis Sevilla v FC Barcelona - LaLiga EA Sports Photo by Eric Verhoeven/Soccrates/Getty Images
There’s an argument too that the subs at Betis didn’t really make an awful lot of sense, however, there’s no defending the indefensible when you can’t even get the basics right.
Once again, it puts a relatively poor Real Madrid side back in the box seat, with Los Blancos knowing that if they win their two games in hand they’ll leapfrog their eternal rivals.
After handing them a lesson at the Santiago Bernabeu, Hansi Flick and his team should’ve disappeared into the distance.
As it’s turned out, Barca are needing favours from others in order to protect the status quo, and that’s got to be a worry for the German.
If we wanted to get hyper critical, the team isn’t actually doing that much better now than at the same stage last season under Xavi, so improvements are clearly needed.