Barcelona midfielder Sergio Busquets announced that he will leave the club at the end of this season, marking the end of an era. His upcoming departure has already sparked tributes from the great and the good, providing an opportunity to honor the core of that unique side. Despite all of Lionel Messi’s highlights, Barcelona was not really a highlights team, therefore it is a pleasing summary. The opponent was rendered helpless by the persistent rhythm, which cost them the ball. Busquets contributed to creating that beat. The finest defensive midfielder in Spain’s history, according to his teammate-turned-boss Xavi Hernandez, yet that description leaves little to be desired. Although his function is not mentioned, his position is.
It was transformed by Busquets’ conception of what a midfielder could and ought to do. A position was created in his honor, Claude Makelele. His was a spot where assaults from the other side went to perish. Barca’s exquisite play was conceived at Busquets’ feet. Football was given a fresh start. Guardiola’s unexpected choice to promote Busquets to the first team in 2008 changed the course of the game, just like Johan Cruyff had done a generation before when choosing him to assist in carrying out his vision.
Busquets have been compared to an extinct species, according to the legendary Argentine coach and aesthete Cesar Menotti. While operating in the era of athletes, this knock-kneed midfielder managed to play at a tempo of his own despite not being an athlete. It was supposed to be impossible. The game was now based on turnovers and transitions and had grown more violent. However, Barcelona’s passing strategy made it such that he seldom needed to go past a canter.
“I was in charge of analyzing the opponent when I was at Barcelona. I used to ask him, “Busi, what do you think?” before every game. He was fully informed about his adversary. Well, I believe we need to exercise caution in that circumstance, he would respond,” former head coach Robert Moreno said about Sergio Busquets. “He would warn everyone, even the referee, saying, ‘We need to be careful with this referee because this referee is a little nervous.'” He is amazing. With all the demands on you, the challenges you face, and your own thoughts, it ought to be impossible. During a game, he was able to approach the bench and state, “They are doing this, and we need to do that to stop them.” What, like, are you? He was describing stuff that I was unable to analyze from where I was standing in the stands, which gave me a fantastic tactical view.”
Cruyff was drawn to him right away for this reason. Busquets was just 27 years old when the architect of the Barcelona church passed away. Old enough for Cruyff to observe that he had a seasoned intellect. The toughest type of football to play, as the great master used to say, is basic football. Busquets, a player who appeared to have arrived from both the past and the future yet would rule the present, made it seem simple. He was the embodiment of Barca.
“He spent 15 years with Barcelona and an additional three at the academy. He has a style of play that feels like Barcelona and is appropriate for that squad. He might not have had the same career if he had played somewhere else. He can perform in such a manner,” Moreno added. “Because of this, I assert that there are players who are fitted to that style or not, not players who are excellent or awful. Because he is unwilling to go from one box to another, asking him to play for Liverpool would be difficult. He is not skilled at it. However, he is the greatest if you desire possession, build-up, a high press after losing the ball, and control of the action on the pitch.”
The sensation of loss could be explained by his standing as an exception. They referred to Messi as an extraterrestrial, but even he felt like a development over the past because of how quickly his mind and body moved. Busquets was distinctive. a little less distinct today compared to when he came on the scene. But even at a time when possession football seems to have decisively won the debate, there are still a surprisingly small number of players who fit his description.
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