Benfica swatted aside Ronald Koeman’s side by the same scoreline in Lisbon last night, just over a fortnight after being thrashed 3-0 by Bayern Munich.
The five-time champions are off to their worst start in a Champions League campaign, sitting bottom of Group E and facing the prospect of missing out on the knockout stage for the first time since the 2003-04 season.
Lionel Messi roared into life at Paris Saint-Germain this week, scoring the type of breathtaking goal that he has so often blessed the blaugrana with, but the Argentine remains the most recent Barcelona player to score in the competition, a sad footnote to this ongoing Barça tragedy.
Koeman’s shoulders are put under even more strain as a result of his defeat. In 1992, the Dutchman scored the game-winning goal to end Barcelona’s long wait for the European Cup, but now presides over a team that appears to be a long way from such glory.
“I’m not going to argue about the level of my team,” Koeman told reporters after the game.
“There’s no point in comparing this with Barcelona teams of years gone by. That’s as clear as water.
“I can only give you my opinion of my work at the club — I feel backed by my players and their attitude. The rest, the club, I’m not sure … I can’t say any more because I don’t know what the club thinks in that sense. It’s not in my hands,” Koeman added.
Frenkie de Jong, a midfielder, rushed to his compatriot’s aid, but his efforts may be in vain, as Spanish press reports suggest that Koeman’s dismissal is imminent.
“I don’t think changing the coach is the solution,” De Jong said.
“I can’t talk about Koeman, it’s not my place. We have to keep fighting, stay together and overcome this situation. We can only escape this with hard work and being united as a team.”
Darwin Nez scampering behind Barcelona’s high-line far too easily before cutting in and sliding a low effort past Marc-Andre ter Stegen was the writing on the wall inside three minutes in Lisbon.
Later in the half, Luuk de Jong was given a golden opportunity to equalize when his namesake squared the ball for an open goal, but the Dutchman fluffed his shot, sending the ball closer to the corner flag than the net.
Rafa Silva added a third before Nez completed his hat-trick with a penalty, putting the game out of reach with just over ten minutes remaining.
After Nez scored his team’s third goal, Benfica players celebrate.
After Nez scored his team’s third goal, Benfica players celebrate.
Despite this, Barcelona found time to inflict more misery on themselves, with summer signing Eric Garca being sent off for a second yellow card late in the game.
Barcelona, like Bayern Munich two weeks ago, finished the game with a slew of young players on the field. The average age was just over 22 years old before Garca’s early departure.
Last month, Barcelona President Joan Laporta revealed the full extent of the club’s “very worrying” financial situation, stating that the club was now over $1.5 billion in debt with a $515 million negative net worth.
On October 20, Barça will face Dynamo Kyiv in what has undoubtedly already become a must-win game, despite the fact that it is only the third match of the group.
It’s unclear whether Koeman will be available for Kyiv’s visit to the Camp Nou, but Barcelona’s problems are all too visible.
