Learn to beat the bus the Barca way

It used to be a single bus, now it has become two buses, according to Brendan Rodgers.

Very soon it will have to be decided if the buses in question are single or of the double-decker variety. But more about the Mourinho Express later.

At the end of the day, it is about defensive discipline. And this was in abundance when Barcelona played Villareal late Sunday night.

The Catalans, struggling with emotions after the passing of Tito Villanova, had to contend once again with trying to break down a tight defence.

The Spanish giants have had to deal with negative football too many times over the years. Yet, they turn up every week knowing they are going to break teams down, teams that only set out to stifle instead of expressing themselves.

The boys from Barca come prepared with a mentality of needing patience and composure, instead of constant trickery and fluidity.

Quite possibly, Barcelona are the only team in the world who face opponents happy to defend deep every week. They never complain.

They get on with their job of keeping possession and being patient.

And last night, Villareal finally cracked despite taking a deserved two-goal lead courtesy of counter-attacking moves coming good. A cruel double deflection and a header from a badly-positioned defender brought Barca back into the game and Leo Messi finally sealed the win.

However, just a few hours earlier, at Anfield, the home team had been defeated by an opponent they could not break down, despite enjoying better possession and a massive margin in shots at goal.

For all that has been said and done, Chelsea are under no obligation to attack or even to try to play at Anfield.

Jose Mourinho, ever the Reactive One, is special in what he does, but it does not mean that what he does is not boring to watch. It works, and that is what matters in football.

But if one were to analyse the match further, it becomes obvious that the lack of European football has meant there is no variation in tactics by Brendan Rodgers.

He has perfected the game plan of attacking teams with a fast brand of progressive football. He has caught the English Premier League by surprise by being a breath of fresh air in what has become a stuffy league.

This, however, has caught up with Liverpool, and it was never more apparent than against Chelsea that space and time in the defensive third of the pitch is a commodity.

It certainly is going to be the norm when Liverpool return to European football at the highest level next season. There will be quite perhaps the time when Rodgers will have to apply the same negative tactics too, akin to those that Rafael Benitez applied with varying degrees of success during his tenure at Anfield, both in Europe and in England.

Even the great Real Madrid had to resort to a very deep and compact defensive formation when they hosted and beat Bayern Munich in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League semi-final last Wednesday.

Certainly, it has been a major lesson learnt for Rodgers and we can forgive his bitterness, which is probably a spur of the moment reaction. If not for the calamitous mistake by Steven Gerrard, it could well have been a goalless draw.

The cruel irony of the Liverpool stalwart, inspiring with his “We won’t let this slip” cry post-Manchester City, but did exactly that as he was the victim of a poor first touch. Demba Ba made no mistake and Liverpool then peppered Chelsea to no avail.

The comfort with which Chelsea sat back was unnerving for the Anfield crowd, Branislav Ivanovic imperious at centerback. The Serbian fullback was at ease facing off Raheem Sterling and Coutinho’s direct runs.

Alongside him, the young Czech talent Tomas Kalas – making his debut in place of an injured John Terry - and his first ever Premier League assignment was Luis Suarez. The final result tells us he succeeded. Speed and a good sense of positioning makes him a defender to watch for the future.

Gerrard peppered Mark Schwarzer’s goal with shot after shot, but the lack of conviction behind them was apparent. With each passing shot, Gerrard grew more and more frustrated, most visibly crumpling to the ground after a brilliant opportunity to head for goal was wasted with a meek header instead.

Ultimately, with all feet on deck, that is in the Chelsea half, the Blues grabbed a second when Fernando Torres and Willian broke into the Liverpool half unmarked, leaving just 50 yards and Simon Mignolet between them and the goal.

Torres unselfishly set Willian for the tap-in, and one wonders if the thought crossed the Spaniard’s mind to go for goal himself. But one prefers to think he just did not want to be the one to hit the final nail into his former club's disappointing night.

The Premier League title is still Liverpool's to play for and expect them to be smarter in their ways.

Manchester City have to win their three remaining fixtures – Everton (away), Aston Villa (home), West Ham United (home) – and Liverpool fans will be looking to their Merseyside neighbours for a massive favour on Saturday.

However, the question still lingers – could Chelsea snatch it in the end? This season is far from over. – April 29, 2014.

* This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insider.