Mascherano as a holding midfielder - time for evaluation?

Busquets is a better attacking option because of his ability to pinpoint a slide-rule pass in 'the hole' & counterpress even before a counterattack starts in comparision with mascheranho who is better at dealing with counterattacks once they have been initiated, the former being a more agressive offensive strategy & the latter relying on mascherano's ability to track & tackle.

Regarding the comments on 'system' & 'midfield isnt as important in this new system' guys, i never really understood why this subreddit paid any credence to such wild theories. I for one firmly thought about my preconceptions & came to the conclusion that there are highly intellligent pro's who are training the first team & it would be a bit daft to think that they of all people would neglect the most important part of the field.

'Midfield is not important' isn't true at all, rather than elaborate build-up's which relied on pulling defenders out of position & quickly switching onto the complimentary part of the field, barcelona rather seem to have shifted to(rather wisely so),

Maneuvered counterattack: (Source:Massimo Luchessi:Attacking Soccer,A tactical Analysis)

'A play that develops principally in vertical lines through which the team tries to exploit, as quickly as possible, a space that has opened up. If a play like this is to be effective the players must be good at receiving the ball in deep positions, at creating passes that penetrate the free spaces and at moving forward with the ball at their feet, beating opponents, or changing speed or direction'..(i.e MSN)

For good players we would generally suggest alternating the elaborate attack with the maneuvered counterattack, falling back on the 'instant attack'(teams that play solely on defense & countering) when, on regaining the ball, we notice that our opponent’s defense lines are badly positioned or exposed. When playing on fields that are not always completely flat and with players whose technical abilities are not always up to the mark, we believe that the best tactic to use is the maneuvered counterattack. . i.e MSN.

This invites opponents to press up high because since the defence sits deeper & if the opponent wins the ball back in barcas own half they have a high chance of scoring.The games against bilbao,ATM(away) are good examples. But Busquets, iniesta are such fantatic needle players( players who can get out of a tight space to find a team-mate), Messi & co. find devastating amounts of space as compared to previous seasons because the principles of positional play were not being followed as strictly as they were being under Josep Guardiola leading to clogging of the game & inability to switch play effectively.

The midfield basically has the resposibility of soaking pressure & helping quick trasitions rather than playing final balls( well, most of the time), the approach varies opponent-wise though & sometimes Playing the Elaborate attacking game:

"A maneuver that is carried forward principally on horizontal lines will require that the team moves as one unit and advances with the ball. The elaborate attack entails a relatively high number of passes, and calls for players capable of building up plays and surmounting the opponent’s defensive lines:

-creative, coordinated movements;

-the exploitation of the spaces between players, or,

-movements down the sidelines that will lead to a cross and so jump the defense.

In short: THE MIDFIELD IS VERY F*CKING IMPORTATNT MATE, let nobody else make you beleive so.

/r/Barca Thread