Athletic Bilbao - Barcelona: Coach Valverde's uncertain return

(Baonghean.vn) - Before taking over the hot seat at Camp Nou, coach Valverde spent 4 years leading Athletic Bilbao and helped the team achieve quite impressive results.

Although he could not bring the Basque team back to its golden age of decades ago, the strategist born in 1964 also became one of the most beloved coaches at San Mames stadium.

The 2015 Spanish Super Cup victory (defeating Luis Enrique's Barcelona with a total score of 5 - 1 after 2 matches) is a brilliant milestone that Valverde left in the tradition room and in the hearts of Bilbao fans. However, that does not mean that the battle between Bilbao - Barcelona will take place in a friendly atmosphere, lacking heat.

In all aspects, the team led by coach Valverde has shown to be superior to the San Mames team. There is no need to compare the strength of the two sides, but in terms of form and head-to-head record in recent years in La Liga, Messi and his teammates have a big advantage.

Up to this point, Barcelona is leading the La Liga rankings with 25 points after 9 rounds (8 wins, 1 draw), while Bilbao is struggling in the middle of the rankings with 11 points (3 wins, 2 draws, 4 losses).

Bilbao defeated Barcelona to win the Spanish Super Cup in 2015. Photo: Internet

Not only did Barcelona perform brilliantly in the domestic arena, they also showed their formidable strength in the Champions League, winning 9 absolute points in 3 matches against Juventus (3-0), Sporting (1-0) and Olympiacos (3-1). In contrast, Bilbao only got 2 points after clashes with Hertha Berlin (0-0), Zorya (0-1) and Ostersunds (2-2) in the Europa League. The difference in form between the two teams is too obvious.

In addition, Bilbao's head-to-head record against Barcelona at San Mames is also quite poor. Statistics show that since the 2013-2014 season, Bilbao has often failed to host Barcelona at their home ground in La Liga.

The 4-0 victories in the first leg of the Spanish Super Cup (August 14, 2015) and the 2-1 victory in the first leg of the 1/8 round of the Spanish King's Cup (January 5, 2017) are just the rare bright spots that Bilbao has achieved in their confrontations with the "Catalan giant".

In addition, the fact that coach Valverde has spent many years at San Mames Stadium will help the 53-year-old strategist have a thorough understanding of his former team Bilbao. The presence of coach Valverde on the coaching bench of Barcelona makes the home team Bilbao's chances of winning even more difficult. Coach Jose Angel Ziganda and his team will have to face the person who built a Bilbao with an extremely annoying style of play in Spanish football.

That does not mean Bilbao will surely lose this match. The visiting team Barcelona is also facing some difficult problems that coach Valverde cannot solve in the short term. The problem of the main duo Messi - Suarez alone is enough to make the Cules feel uneasy.

The Argentine star is showing signs of being overloaded after a long period of continuous hard work. The image of Messi taking medicine on the field during the Barcelona 3-1 Olympiacos match last Wednesday reflects La Pulga's negative health condition.

Star Messi is having to work too hard for Barcelona and the Argentina national team. Photo: Internet

Once Messi is not physically fit, Barcelona's strength will be visibly weakened. Remember, in the last two visits to San Mames in La Liga, Messi did not score a single goal. In the 2015-2016 season, Barcelona won 1-0 thanks to Suarez's goal; in the 2016-2017 season, the away team continued to beat Bilbao with a minimal score thanks to Rakitic's only goal. Now Suarez is in a state of being unlucky with the opponent's net, and Rakitic is in a terrible decline, who can coach Valverde rely on to help Barcelona win against Bilbao?

Alcacer is still not used, Deulofeu has not left much of an impression. Perhaps, the Cules will have to wait for the brilliance of Paulinho, Denis Suarez, but that may not be enough to help Barcelona leave San Mames with 3 points in hand. Most likely, the home team Bilbao will get points against the La Liga giants.

* The Athletic Bilbao - Barcelona match takes place at 1:45 a.m. (Hanoi time), Sunday, October 29.

Thanh Hung