#barcelona

#barcelona

The word of the day in Barcelona is frustration. This Girona game should have been put away in the first half, but that of course assumes Barcelona is able to put away their chances. Lamine Yamal alone missed three point blank opportunities in the opening 45 minutes, one of which was a penalty. When Barcelona finally took the lead behind a redemptive goal from Pau Cubarsí, Girona pulled one back within minutes.

The Spanish international has been working hard to return, and the latest reports suggest that his comeback is now just around the corner. According to information shared by Javier Miguel in AS, the plan is for Pedri to receive medical clearance on Sunday, provided there are no last-minute problems. If everything goes as expected, the midfielder could feature for a few minutes against Levante, marking his return to competitive action after weeks on the sidelines.

Barcelona's heavy defeat against Atletico Madrid did not come out of nowhere. In many ways, it felt like the natural result of a pattern that has been building for weeks. The team had already shown signs of vulnerability in the opening stages of matches, but they had often managed to escape thanks to strong second-half reactions. Against Atletico Madrid, however, there was no way back after the damage done in the first 45 minutes.

Who is Soto Grado? As pointed out by Diario SPORT, Grado's appointment has raised immediate concern within the Blaugrana dressing room. The official arrives amidst intense controversy following Pau Cubarsí's disallowed goal against Atletico Madrid, which prompted formal complaints from the club. Soto Grado has a turbulent history with Barça, yielding a record of seven wins, three draws, and six defeats across 16 matches.

Deco is reported to have jetted over to Belgium this winter in a bid to try and secure an agreement for the teenager to move to Camp Nou this summer.

While the loss at the Metropolitano halted significant momentum, Hansi Flick remains confident that the team can bounce back to their best. A major part of this optimism stems from the imminent return of several heavyweights to the squad over the coming weeks. As pointed out by Diario AS, the most immediate boost comes from Raphinha, who returned to group training on Friday and is expected to feature against Girona tomorrow. His leadership and aggression were sorely missed in the capital, where the team lacked a figurehead to resist the opponent's onslaught.

"Very advanced... There were advanced conversations about Jonathan Tah, for example, and it didn't happen."

"The first half was tough. Atletico were much better than us, with more intensity and being more aggressive in the challenges. Indeed, the pitch didn't help, but that's no excuse because we weren't good. In the second half, we improved, we scored, and I don't know if it was a goal or not because I don't know how long it took them to check for offside,"

Joao Cancelo's second stint at Barcelona has been more about realism than fanfare, as the right-back has hardly impressed since joining the club on a loan deal in January. A month into his spell at Barcelona, the Portuguese international has not been able to win the trust of Hansi Flick, producing a few indifferent performances here and there. This is not too surprising considering Hansi Flick and sporting director Deco brought Cancelo back to provide much-needed depth on both defensive flanks,