Barcelona fails to exploit its tactical strategy during Real Betis’ draw

Barcelona is currently in the middle of a bad streak. Saturday’s 2-2 draw against Real Betis is the fourth time in five La Liga games they have dropped points, and with Real Madrid beating Girona later today, their lead at the top of the table has now been reduced to two points (and they have played one more game).

It was a disappointing performance from Barcelona at the Benito Villamarín and, curiously, one area they failed to exploit is their ability to catch opposing teams offside. Hansi Flick’s high-line tactic has allowed the Blaugranas to be extremely tight in defence, although it didn’t work in Seville.

According to Marca, Barcelona failed to detect Betis’ offside on just one occasion during Saturday’s match; It is the first time this has happened in a match since Flick’s arrival during the summer.

Barcelona were unable to catch Real Betis offside even once last night, the first time this has happened in their 22 official matches this season. @gbsans

— Barcacentre (@barcacentre) December 8, 2024

There is clearly work to do for Flick on the training pitch, although he doesn’t have much change as Barcelona will return to action on Wednesday when they face Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League.