The Cadiz coach explained that his team would try to score against the Blaugrana through direct football, allowing the visitors to dominate the possession.
Cadiz will try to hurt Barcelona
Alvaro Cervera gave a hint on how Cadiz are planning to play with Barcelona ahead of their upcoming home match on Saturday at the Estadio Ramon de Carranza. The Cadiz coach explained that his team would try to score against the Blaugrana through direct football, allowing the visitors to dominate the possession. “We need to know that Barcelona are better than us, but this is a football game,” Cervera said at his press conference. “We all love football because many times a smaller team can win. I’m not going to try to have more touch than Barcelona. We’re going to try to make them less comfortable on the pitch, and when we get the chance, we’ll try to score. But scoring against Barcelona is not done with an eight-pass move. It’s done through speed, straight passes forward and that’s the idea.”
Barca have their best period
Barcelona have seemed to have rediscovered their form in the last few games, and Cervera singled out some of the players who have stood out lately. “From my point of view, Barcelona are having their best period,” added the coach. “I see a lot of players who are in shape. Players like Antoine Griezmann, Ousmane Dembele or Martin Braithwaite are in good shape. Now they are a team with more intensity than before. Then there is Lionel Messi, who is the best in the world. Barcelona are entering the game on the other side scoring four goals against Osasuna, who are a fierce team. Barcelona always have resources for everything. I’m getting used to the idea that these types of players win the game. They are perfect, both as a team and individually.”
Cervera believes that his side must find a balance between the defending and the attacking, so they can both soak up pressure and hit the counter. “We will try to protect the areas where they are deadly,” said Cervera. “If we lose one of their forwards, they will be able to score. We will try to stop them from sending the ball there, but it’s not easy. If you progress up the pitch, players like Ousmane Dembele or Jordi Alba can make a killer pass in behind, and if you sit back, you cannot hurt them. It isn’t effortless because they have a lot of outlets. They can easily put the ball in certain areas on the field, and it can be deadly.”