Ramzi Rambles: With Elisa!

DAVID VS GOLIATH?

Two guys having a coffee break in a crowded café’… One of them supports Los Leones and the other is a fan of the Blaugrana

Ramzi: Hey Elisa, how is it going in the Basque Camp?

Elisa: Well, Athletic continues the fearsome foursome run. This time they face FC Barcelona at El Catedral, what used to be called the Fortress. Athletic has gotten off to a very slow start with only five points and two losses in their last two games. What about the Catalans?

Ramzi: Barcelona is on the way up! Did you see our come back against Espanyol? Betis? Shakhtar? Did you see how we smashed Atletico Madrid?! We are the best! Who is next? Athletic Bilbao? We will have ANOTHER SCORING CARNIVAL NO DOUBT! Hm… that's the atmosphere in the Barca camp…and that's exactly what makes me worried… the over confidence virus is filling the air! The way you talk about Athletic makes it feel as if its time to pack the bags and prepare for a relegation battle? Already?!

Elisa: Well no, it's still early days and if you recall last year, Athletic started off extremely slow, but went on a dynamite run after the Winter break, so now is not the time to panic. Yes the socios are upset, they expected a solid start (after a loooong pre-season) and the return of the Copa del Rey. They are all still possible, but the play on the pitch needs to improve, here and now. The team needs to play as a cohesive unit and when the going gets tough... you know the cliche.

Ramzi: Yes I know, Elisa, maybe that’s why I think Barcelona needs to take this game seriously. No doubt Athletic can't match the quality of the Catalan giant, not at the moment anyway, but what about Numancia? In brief this game must be taken seriously or else… The guys of the Basque are well known for their dedication and fighting spirit, they will not welcome Barcelona with chains of roses, nah... This is not Hawaii! This is San Mamés, if you know what I mean… Barcelona will play against a team that has a point to prove after a bad start of the season, a team that may play a very defensive game and count on counter attacks, yeah… Barcelona worst scenario.

Elisa: Here's our record at home against the Catalans:

2007-08 1-1
2006-07 1-3
2005-06 3-1
2004-05 1-1
2003-04 0-1

Ok, nothing stellar, but we do have a fighting chance of making it a game. Rumor has it that Pep may rest Messi, due to the long flight from Argentina and upcoming Champions League games, but ya never know. They have a solid team with an extremely deep bench and they are on fire.

Ramzi: Even though Barcelona usually does not enjoy a nice come back after international break, but it will not be the case this week. I have all the confidence that Barcelona can win this game, REALLY win it – another scoring carnival! But that will only happen if we saw another copy of that wild performance we enjoyed against Atletico, how do you think Athletic will play their cards?

Elisa: Well its Joaquin Caparrós' 50th game with the team and he hasn't come out with a squad yet, because well, it's murky. The head honcho is unsure of his midfield. Javi Martinez looks like he is recuperating quite nicely and may be available for this weekend's game. But sheesh, he was supposed to be out for three to four weeks due to a knee injury. Easy now, the kid is not superman! Joseba Exteberría, El Gallo, looks like he has recovered as well. But I would assume that both players will start on the bench and only brought in if needed.

So there are two rules of thought for the starting 11 - 4-5-1 or 4-4-2? Here we tinker again! Athletic has had a lot of problems with a holey defense, so a 4-5-1 could be the way to go. But the goal production has also proved an issue, so there is an argument to go with the old 4-4-2. Athletic needs to impose a very physical game, clog the midfield and pathways. If you allow Barça to play their fast passing game, well... game over. Frankly, I would be happy with a point or a low scoring loss, no more embarrassing 4 nil games puleeze.

Here's the potential line up with 4-4-2: In Goal - Iraizoz, In Defense - Iraola, Aitor Ocio, Amorebieta, Balenziaga. In Midfield - Gurpegi, Orbaiz, Yeste, David Lopez Upfront - Susaeta or Gabilondo and Fernando Llorente

For 4-5-1: In Goal and Defense no change, In midfield move Susaeta back on the right wing and play Llorente upfront as the lone striker.

There are other iterations, I can go on. Most probably Caparrós won't make up his mind until match day. I feel that Athletic needs to go with experience especially upfront and in midfield. That's why Ion Velez and Iturraspe are not listed above. Being a fiscally prudent club with a very strict Basque policy makes it very difficult for the club to be successful. The key is to play as a collective unit with a system or strategy that picks at the weaknesses of each opponent. I don't think that we are there yet, but I see the potential. Let's go at the Cules with some high balls and some very physical play. Still, I don't think we have a chance in hell of winning the game. I just want a respectable result and an inspired battle, what about Barcelona?

Ramzi: Its easier to guess the lottery numbers Elisa, Pep is an unpredictable coach, specially for a game that introduce a champions league week, so don't blame me if I became more confusing while trying to figure out the right selection, but let's make an attempt to read how pep and co do the decision making and pick their starting eleven.

Ramzi moving the coffee cups aside and opening a roll of papers on the table, While Elisa move his eyes around the place, I don’t know this guy, what the hell is he doing?!!

The typical, automatic, theoretical – put any other weird description you want – selection is:

Valdes, Alves, Puyol, Pique, Abidal – Busquets, Xavi, Hleb – Messi, Eto'o, and Iniesta.

In the perfect world this is the selection recommended, seal a result then make your substitutions getting Caceres in for Puyol to rest the captain for the Champions league game, or for Abidal to figure out how he can perform on the left, and then use Bojan to save Messi batteries for the following battles.

But some factors will shake that up, first, it may be too early for Hleb to start, the Iceland could have been the player who take Hleb role then, but again, Gudi is not ready - injured- and pep may give the priority for the players who had no international games to play, or came back earlier than the others, and based on that, he may pick Rafa Márquez, and Seydou Keita, as starters instead of Puyol/Abidal and Hleb.

Touré Yaya came back early too but has picked up a minor injury in the internal meniscus of his right knee. It is not yet known whether the injury is serious enough to cast any doubt on his presence in the game at San Mamés on Sunday – as mentioned on the Club official site... So if he is ready he may take Busquets place.

Tactically, if Bojan or Hleb started the game instead of Messi, we will have no tactical changes, the same 4-3 -3 with Bojan playing as a second striker beside Eto'o, Iniesta on the left and Alves running on the right flank.

What about my favorite selection? I will be more unpredictable than pep, and in the photo below is a sample of the Offense selection that may work for this game, keeping in mind that Messi played two internationals in South America and may be there is a risk of using him from the start.

As for the defense, when losing the ball Alves bounce back to do his role as right back, the trio Puyol, Pique and Marquez are appropriate for this game, they will form a solid back line but most importantly they will have their saying to cause threat through set pieces – corners – which may prove being the key to unlock Athletic defensive game. But if pep wants the two fullbacks to go forward instead of having three central backs, then Abidal is a starter. Offensively, If Hleb is not completely fit, then Keita will be the guy for the mission, unless if Pep wanted an Ultra offensive game using Iniesta in the middle and Bojan as a third striker, even though knowing that Bilbao fans are well known for putting lot of pressure on the visitors, its better to start Bojan on the bench. Final note, There are whispers that Xavi may not be able to play this game, if so, then iniesta presence in the midfield is Vital to insure ball distribution”.

Elisa: “Oh and a last minute referee change. Mejuto Gonzalez got injured during the International play, so Undiano Mallenco will be the man. Don't worry, even though he is a Basque ref, Athletic will still get no favors.”

Ramzi: “Good luck, Elisa, I think you will need it ;) “

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Thank you Elisa for the great cooperation to make this preview come true, click here to visit his Athletic Bilbao blog on "The Offside".