Barca show their potential but lack of depth is a concern

Photo by Aitor Alcalde/Getty Images

A hard-fought victory for Flick on opening day comes with warning signs

Hansi Flick will take it. A win is a win when it’s your first day on the job as the new Barcelona manager.

Even more so when, per the new Barca tradition, you can’t register all your players.

Flick has spent the preseason working with teenagers, most of whom haven’t yet made their Barca first team debuts. Looking at the roster against Valencia, the question will now be if he’ll need to depend on them out of necessity rather than choice.

Photo by Jose Breton/Pics Action/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Throw in another surprise with the absence of Ilkay Gundogan from the lineup. Barcelona already had an alarming lack of options in the midfield, especially at the pivot position. And under Flick’s system, he’ll need to find two.

That’s what made the win down the Mediterranean coast, in a very hostile Mestalla atmosphere, so satisfying.

As Barca fans, we want to get behind these young players, and the new manager. So even when they had a scary drop in form for much of the first half, we’re willing to be patient and give them the benefit of the doubt.

Photo by Aitor Alcalde/Getty Images

That patience however will wear thin. The media, and many fans alike, will be quick to ring the alarm bells when the team starts dropping points.

On Saturday, they got a fortunate equalizer right before halftime.

Coming out of the locker room, they made adjustments and got their heads right, and were by far the better team. The 2-1 victory was well deserved.

But let’s also be honest. This roster will not cut it, if the expectation is to keep pace with Real Madrid in the race for a La Liga title.

Photo by Aitor Alcalde/Getty Images

It’s asking too much of very inexperienced players who are untested under pressure.

So what will Hansi Flick and Joan Laporta do next in the final days of the transfer window?

For one, they have a real problem in the midfield. All the attention on reinforcing the forward line may have been naïve.

This team cannot rely on Marc Bernal and Marc Casado as the first choice solution. They both have potential but they need some experienced help.

With Gundogan’s future seemingly now up in the air all of a sudden, this problem just got even bigger.

Photo by Eric Alonso/Getty Images

When will Gavi and Frenkie de Jong be back? Anyone’s guess.

Will Andreas Christensen and Eric Garcia get a chance to fill the shoes. It looks like it at this point.

But let’s make one thing clear, this season will be long. And the only way to go the distance to be competitive across all competitions is with a deep roster.

Real Madrid’s first and second choice players at all positions look scary good. For Barcelona, the lack of options could derail their chances in short order.

But there’s still time.

Flick is a good manager. Laporta needs to give him the tools to succeed.

Source: barcablaugranes.com