Maybe Not, But What If This Time It Is? | OneFootball

Athletic return to Barcelona still waiting for a league win there since 2001. Across 24 league trips, plus five more in the Copa and Supercopa, the wall has stood firm, even during Barcelona's spell at Montjuïc.

Hope persists that every season brings the drought's end a little closer. They arrive tonight with more doubts than certainties after an opening marked by bright moments and deep shadows against Sevilla.

The positives lie in midfield, where Gerenabarrena and Canales offered fresh ideas. The worry is a back line leaking goals, Sevilla created very little yet scored three.

A cloud of negativity has hovered. There were a few whistles, world champions have not been received by institutions in Bizkaia and feel like exiles, and resentment has grown after the board ended courtesy tickets for staff, players and former presidents.

At least a new coach tends to rekindle belief. Javi González, one of the heroes present in the 2001 win, says bringing in an outsider with a clear head can shake things up, but the Berizzo episode, with methods that convinced no one, lingers.

Whether a shock arrives tonight is another matter. Maybe not, but what if this time it is?

Source: as.com

“Artificial intelligence was used to assist in creating this article based on reporting from the original source quoted.”