Much will be made of Barcelona’s collapse and the fall-out that will follow, but Friday’s game was proof of how Bayern are the best team around.
The stadium — three-quarters empty, one-quarter filled with substitutes, coaches and media at the sort of population density you might find in Alaska — must have made it worse. Angry boos and vicious abuse, anguished howls and despairing cries… however unpleasant, they tell you you’re alive. They’re the slap to the face or pinch of the cheek that generate pain and adrenaline to shake the numbness and activate whatever fight is left. The surreal near-emptiness of the Estadio da Luz must have sown some seed of doubt in the minds of Barcelona players as they went 4-1 down with just over half an hour gone against Bayern Munich in their Champions League quarterfinal… was this real? The mind, inevitably, went back to the 2014 World Cup semifinal, the “Mineirazo” in Belo Horizonte, when hometown Brazil found themselves 5-0 down against Germany inside half an hour. Three of those Bayern players — Jerome Boateng, Manuel Neuer and Thomas Muller — were there on the bleakest night in Brazilian football history since 1950. Then, as last night, it was Mueller who opened the scoring. But yeah, it was real. All too real. The thing about Barcelona in recent years is that when they fall, they fall hard, especially in the knockout phases of the Champions League. Paris Saint-Germain (0-4) and Juventus (0-3) in 2016-17. Roma in 2017-18 (0-3). Liverpool last season (0-4). And now this. “We’ve hit rock-bottom,” said Gerard Pique. “We need to change — not just players, not just managers. I’m not talking about individuals, I’m talking about structural change. If it will help the club, I’ll leave too. Today was unacceptable. It was a disgrace.” – Barca ratings: Embarrassing loss to Bayern – Pique: Barca hit “rock bottom” in Champions League – Stream ESPN FC Daily on ESPN+ (U. S. only) The knee-jerk conclusion will no doubt be that this Barca team is as dependent on Lionel Messi as a yo-yo is reliant on gravity and that when he’s subdued, Barca crumble. And that Quique Setien, like the man he replaced, Ernesto Valverde, will be ushered out stage right in 3,2,1. Not just him, either. Embattled Barcelona president Jose Maria Bartomeu was quick to say that Pique was correct and there were going to be massive changes.
