Lang Hunter

On May 8th, after a week of rumours and speculation, Barca president, Joan Laporta, announced that come the end of the season, coach Frank Rijkaard would be replaced in the Barca hot seat by Josep Guardiola, ex-Barca hero, Spanish international and current coach of Barcelona’s B side.

It wasn’t a particular surprise, in fairness - the Catalan giants expect great things from their managers and 2 seasons without any silverware would get any coach sacked at Camp Nou. The announcement, on the back of a 4-1 drubbing at the hands of the newly crowned Champions, Real Madrid, no doubt sped up the decision making and press conference.

Guardiola is untried at La Liga level as a manager, but has done great things with the Barca ‘B’ side, helping them into a promotion position this season. At 37, he’s also young for the job, but as a hero for Barca in his playing days, he will no doubt be a great choice. He has great respect for Rijkaard, saying “He has been extraordinary in everything he has done. He is an example to us all”. He also refused to comment on any team ideas, simply letting it be known that Rijkaard is still coach until the final game of the season has been played, and that he himself, still has a job to complete in helping Barca B gain promotion.

So, has Frank been a success or a failure as Barca coach? Well, that’s a tough call, we’ll leave the judgement for the time being, let’s see where it all began.

Rijkaard began his coaching career back in 1998, when he took over the reigns of the Dutch national side, where he took his nation to the semi-finals of the 2000 European Championships. That was followed by a pretty dismal season at Sparta Rotterdam (01-02), when the club were relegated from the Dutch 1st Division for the first time in their history. Rijkaard was unsurprisingly sacked at the end of the season. After a break of almost a year, he got the job at Barca, appointed by the then newly elected president, Laporta.

The first season (2003-4) did not start well, with the side finding themselves in the relegation zone early on. But Rijkaard worked with his inherited team (along with a new face, Ronaldinho) and turned things around nicely, with Barca finishing the season in 2nd position in the league. In Europe, Barca made the 4th round of the UEFA Cup, being knocked out by Celtic.

Season 04-05 brought with it new hope, and many new faces. Rijkaard’s dream team was assembled. He reaped the rewards, with Barcelona winning the league for the first time since 1999. In the Champions League, they made it through the group stage, being knocked out in the 1st knockout round by Chelsea. A successful season, the Catalan giants were back! A comment made by Rijkaard regarding his team and the style of play he chose was answered thus: “I strongly believe that you cannot copy anyone”.

2005-2006 brought continued success, with Barca retaining their La Liga crown, and also defeating Arsenal 2-1 to become Champions League winners. The side, virtually the same as the previous seasons, were by now a real team unit and it showed in their play. By now, Frank was a legend.

The problem with becoming the holders of La Liga, and Champions League winners too, is that for many other teams, the match against you becomes their very own ‘cup final’ and that extra bit of passion always comes to the top in matches against the ‘Title Holders’. Add to the fact that the team in question are Barcelona, and you soon realise that every game is tough, every player has something to prove and there are no easy matches.

Welcome to 2006-2007. This is how the season would be for Barca. The league crown was wrested from their grasp and they got dumped out of the Champions League by Liverpool after the group stages (notice the way it’s always a British team puts Barca out?). La Liga went down to the wire, with Real Madrid eventual winners only due to a better head-to-head against Barca, after the 2 sides finished the season equal on points. But, history doesn’t remember the losers, Barca’s fiercest rivals had won the title. The season ended with no silverware (other than the Spanish Super Cup, where the winners of the league play the winners of the Copa de Rey). In Barcelona, that is not a good season.

This season, 2007-08 promised much, but produced nothing. An exit from the Champions League at the semi-final stage,  the same too the Spanish Copa del Rey (to eventual winners, Valencia) and another league title lost – again, to Real Madrid. Barca have even lost their season long grasp of 2nd place to Villareal, who, with just one game left, cannot be caught and therefore have an automatic Champions League spot. Barca are not even guaranteed 3rd yet, as Atletico Madrid have the same points going into the final week – so they’re going to have to go through unfamiliar Champions League qualifying to make it.

With another trophy-less season, there would not have been a bookies taking money on the outcome. Frank would be on his way.

What went wrong?  In the mind set of Spanish football, and its ever changing footballing politics, success is the only answer. Ask Fabio Capello – he took Madrid to the title, but still, amazingly, found himself out of a job because of Spanish football politics. That’s exactly what happened to Rijkaard – no trophies = no job. Simpleo facto.

Barcelona are a behemoth of world football, a team we all remember as kids. They win. Everyone wants to be like Barca. No-one could be more stylish. If they don’t, there is only one solution, bring in a new man and start again. Season 08-09 will be the new Barca, and I think we will see a seriously different Barcelona with a lot of new players, as Guardiola starts to construct his own dream team.

So, a success or a failure? Take your pick. Rijkaard certainly had a hugely successful first 3 seasons, but he also had (in a Barca view) a disappointing final 2 seasons.

One thing is for sure, though, Frank Rijkaard will leave his job with the respect he deserves from the whole Barcelona set-up – the fans, the players and the people ‘upstairs’.