Friday, September 24, 2021

Coach Koeman is numbered
The Barça disappointed with number zero

For coach Ronald Koeman, the air at FC Barcelona is weakening: after a goalless draw at FC Cádiz, the gap between the Catalans in the table and archrival Real Madrid has already increased to seven points.

FC Barcelona did not get more than 0-0 in the Spanish League against FC Cádiz. Even before the yellow-red card for Frenkie de Jong in the 65th minute, the Catalans could not live up to their role as favorites on Thursday night. In the latter stages, national goalkeeper Marc-André ter Stegen avoided a goal with a good save and secured at least one point. Memphis Depay had a great opportunity to score the winning goal for the Catalans in injury time.

For the team surrounding the criticized coach Ronald Koeman, it was the third consecutive winless competitive game. In the First Division, Barcelona is seventh with nine points. The club has played one game less, but is already seven points behind leader Real Madrid.

The pressure on coach Ronald Koeman is mounting. Even after Barca’s 3-0 win in the Champions League opener the week before against German champion Bayern Munich, criticism of him had grown louder. More recently, the Dutch manager made a rare appearance at a press conference to encourage patience to rebuild his squad after the farewell of superstar Lionel Messi.

However, there is already speculation about his successor. Former national coach Joachim Löw is said to be one of the candidates.