Barcelona’s Defensive Woes: Struggles with Early Goals, Late Additions, and Pre-Halftime Setbacks

Despite a promising 2-0 victory over Osasuna in the Supercopa that seemed to halt their conceding streak, Barcelona’s defensive concerns persist, with goalkeeper Iñaki Peña retrieving the ball from the net 11 times in the last four matches.

This issue has haunted the team since the early stages of the season, with a staggering statistic: Barcelona has conceded four goals either just before or immediately after the first minute of play. The quickest among them was Bryan Zaragoza’s strike at 17 seconds in the match against Granada, closely followed by Omorodion’s goal for Alavés in Monjuïc (18″).

The encounter at San Mamés on Wednesday saw Guruzeta’s goal at 36 seconds, ranking as the third quickest, and it adds to the list that includes Vermeeren’s goal for Antwerp in the Champions League, coming at 75 seconds.

Playing from behind is far from an ideal situation, disrupting the tactical plans carefully crafted before the matches. The team’s lack of concentration at the start of games is significantly impacting Barcelona’s performance.

Throughout the season, early goals conceded before the first quarter-hour have occurred across various competitions. In addition to those mentioned earlier, goals from Muriqi (Mallorca, minute 8), Dobvyk (Girona, 12′), Munir (Las Palmas, 12′), and Vinicius (Real Madrid, in the Supercopa, 7′ and 10′) have added to the team’s struggles.

Furthermore, Barcelona has encountered challenges just before halftime, conceding seven goals from the 39th minute onward. Goals by Sörloth (Villarreal, 40′), Abdon Prats (Mallorca, 95+3), Sikan (Shakhtar, 40′), Unai López (Rayo Vallecano, 39′), Miguel Gutiérrez (Girona, 40′), Leo Baptistao (Almería), and Vinicius (Real Madrid, 39′) have highlighted the team’s vulnerability during this period.

The team has also experienced late heartbreaks, with four goals conceded in added time after the 90th minute, including Nico Williams’ goal for Athletic in the recent Copa del Rey clash. As Barcelona navigates these defensive challenges, fans and pundits alike await improvements to secure a more solid foundation in future matches.