Three takeaways from Atletico Madrid 4-0 Barcelona | Copa del Rey SF Leg 1 | OneFootball

Yesterday night was perhaps Barcelona’s most forgettable night since the UEFA Champions League elimination against Inter Milan last season, but an even more difficult pill to swallow compared to that fixture.

After all, they at least played well and had a last-minute heartbreak in Italy last season, but last night saw them dominated, destroyed and outdone for ninety full minutes.

From Joan Garcia in goal to Lamine Yamal in attack, every single Barcelona player dished out a shameful performance, and the collective result was that the team were four goals down by half-time.

They did not concede after the break, but the scoreline could well have been worse.

Their run in the Copa del Rey, thus, no longer looks promising and they will have to pull off an unreal comeback next month if they are to stay alive.

Barça Universal brings you three takeaways from Atletico Madrid 4-0 Barcelona.

A disaster from A to Z

Everything that could go wrong for Barcelona went wrong for them at the Riyadh Air Metropolitano as they dished out their worst performance under Hansi Flick.

Barcelona suffered a humiliating defeat. (Photo by Angel Martinez/Getty Images)

For the first time, the team played out ninety minutes without showing any signs of promise or providing a silver lining to hang on to, and Atletico Madrid deserve complete praise for their display.

Irresponsibility of the noise made about the refereeing, which was indeed abysmal, Barcelona did not deserve to win in any capacity, as the entire team struggled to click on the night.

The hosts had more intensity, more desire and fought for every half-chance with double the intensity.

They closed down lines quickly off the ball, played lethal counterattacks and ripped open Barcelona’s high defensive line like paper time and time again, leaving the Catalans with no route back.

Barcelona, on the other hand, could not string even five passes together without miscuing one, were constantly under pressure and buildup play was the worst we have seen all season.

They created barely any threat on Atletico Madrid’s goal all game and the forwards did not click.

For the first time, not one player on the field gave any sort of salvaging presence and the team were equally poor from A to Z, right from the fundamentals of the game and the approach to it.

Incomprehensible refereeing circumstances

While it is true that Barcelona were deserved losers against Atletico Madrid, the fact also remains that they continue to suffer inexplicable refereeing decisions against them, and it is not the first time this year that it has happened.

There were controversial decisions from the referee. (Photo by Angel Martinez/Getty Images)

Flick’s men may not have completed a comeback had the official’s decisions been more rational, but the team virtually lost the game in the eight-minute break that was seemingly called just to find an excuse to disallow a clear goal.

VAR took a staggering eight minutes to reach a decision, and the long break took away Barcelona’s goal that could have started off a comeback as well as their momentum.

The intensity they showed in the first ten minutes of the second half did not return, and understandably so given what an eight-minute break in that weather can do to one’s body.

What is more appalling is that there was no reason to disallow a goal in which Pau Cubarsi can clearly be seen behind Robert Lewandowski before receiving the ball. 

It was later explained that the semi-automatic VAR system malfunctioned and manual lines were drawn to test the offside, but it is clear that in such a situation of minuscule differences and a failed automatic system, the attacking team must be favoured.

Then there is the situation of Giuliani Simeone’s foul on Alejandro Balde early in the second half, one that could have turned the tide around for Barcelona, but VAR didn’t deem it interesting enough to look into despite it being a clear red card offence.

Eric Garcia’s foul, meanwhile, got the rightful attention and had his card changed from yellow to red. 

Flick understandably lashed out at the refereeing openly after the game, for the situation is now testing the patience of the Catalan club.

They may not have won even with better officiating, but the least a team deserves is a level playing field.

A close to impossible way back

Barcelona have mountain to climb. (Photo by Angel Martinez/Getty Images)

Four goals down, ninety minutes to play – Barcelona are in a soup.

Luckily for the Catalans, the Copa del Rey semifinal is a two-legged affair and the situation will be far better for the reverse fixture.

Pedri, Raphinha and Marcus Rashford will be back on the night, the crowd will be behind them, and the pitch will be a playable one, unlike the Metropolitano.

However, one is forced to wonder if a comeback is too much to ask of the team at this point, for overturning a 4-0 deficit has not been done too many times in football.

Barcelona need a historic night to complete a comeback and make the final of the Copa del Rey and must score four goals to even force penalties and five to win outright. 

The Catalans have scored five goals plenty of times under Flick and it is not impossible in that sense.

However, doing so on demand against a team that will come to defend in a low block is close to impossible and cannot be compared to scoring four goals in a free-flowing match.

Lamine Yamal, Raphinha, Pedri and Robert Lewandowski will have to enjoy the night of their lives when Atletico Madrid visit them early in March if Barcelona are to make the final, and at this point, it is safe to say that the Blaugrana are half eliminated from the event.