Even though Antoinne Griezmann is one of the premier strikers in the World, his ideal place in this Barcelona setup could be on the bench. Here are the reasons why!
The 'El Clasico' is all upon us, with the match taking place tomorrow at the Estadio Alfredo Di Stéfano Stadium in Madrid. Barcelona will be looking to get even with Real Madrid, after losing the first Clasico of the La Liga season 3-1- at home.
Contrary to the earlier encounter in the season, Barcelona looks in really good shape. It is safe to say that Barcelona is the inform team in Spain, cutting the lead at the top to just one point. The performance has been so good that there are talks of a 'Domestic Double' on the horizon. That was something that could not even appear in our wildest dreams earlier.
For Barcelona, a victory is the bare minimum outcome from tomorrow's match. The major reason is to validate that the team has turned around the corner. Additionally, a victory against Madrid will create a sizeable gap between them in the table and also any victory that equals or better 3-1 scoreline will help in the head on head record.
Going into such a crucial match, Barcelona has to get its strategy right. We need to have a much more favourable start to the match. For that, we need to get the starting line-up perfect. Against that backdrop, here I am outlining why Griezmann needs to start from the bench.
1. Griezmann does not Fit into Barcelona's Best Setup
Without any doubt, Barcelona's best formation since the turn around has been the 3-5-2 formation. Incidentally, the moment we switched to this formation we started looking much better. The problem for Griezmann is that there is no natural position for Griezmann in this line-up. He can only play in the role of two up front, but that will be occupied by Messi and Dembele.
2. Barcelona Needs a Strong Midfield
Barcelona's fate in this match will depend on two factors - Messi and the Midfield. Our midfield must dominate Real Madrid's. Madrid's last match with Liverpool showed that if allowed to dominate, Modric and Kroos could create trouble for any team.
In that backdrop, the 3-5-2 formation is very much needed. The 3-5-2- formation transforms to a 3-6-1 with Messi linking. The additional cover in midfield allows Busquets to work his magic. The personals in midfield should be none other than Alba, De Jong, Busquets, Pedri and Dest. That's non-negotiable.
Even if Griezmann is slotted into an attacking midfielder role, he will not add anything special to the side, which maybe will take a lot out of the team. Mess dropping deep to accommodate Griezmann will take Barcelona's best striker away from the most dangerous areas.
3. Griezmann is not a Player Who Will be Missed!
Let's be honest, even though he is one of the best players around. But at Barcelona, he has been not so special. Even though he is the second-best scorer for Barcelona this season, he is not a player who will be missed.
In contrast, despite all his misses, Dembele has become an essential tool for the team, especially in the absence of Fati. Griezmann is not in that kind of position now. But he will be a brilliant player to come off the bench to make an impact.
All About FC Barcelona
AllAboutFCBarcelona.com is a Blog dedicated to the Most prestigous Club in the world, FC Barcelona by an ardent fan. Here I discuss about the Latest happening surrounding our Club and present my Views about the same.