2023-09-25 07:00:34
Even before it combusted with those eight magical minutes that gave Barça the victory over Celta (from 0-2 to 3-2), signs had been detected that Montjuïc had an air of the old and already demolished Camp Nou. It happened against Antwerp. But it was just a symptom. It even happened before Lewandowski, With 1-2, the light of Barça’s hope was turned on. And all in a great weekend for Barça, coinciding with Madrid’s defeat at Atlético’s home (3-1), which makes them climb to the top of the League, with 16 points, the same as Girona, Second classified.
It all began on Saturday when that flame was lit after a succession of inexplicable events to explain a triumph connected, as Xavi later admitted, with “the epic, courage and faith”, not with good football. Although that crazy victory gave him the chance to end up leading the League on Sunday night.
Beginning of an idyll
A triumph that, in reality, certified the beginning of an idyll with Montjuïc that is unknown how long it will last. Nor will this relationship be reliable between the culé fan who lives in that rental house that he has had for at least a year and a half, on the top of an Olympic mountain.
The flame has caught on strongly. And with that goal from Cancelo to make it 3-2, they emerged stronger. It is not the Camp Nou. Nor does it aspire to be. But in just four games (Cádiz, Betis, Antwerp and Celta) they have woven a special chemistry. “We are changing the mentality and the public, too,” Xavi stressed.
There is no room for the 83,000 fans who on average attended each game last season at the old culé temple. But it has already gathered a collection of faithful who go up with some frequency to the venue that hosted the Barcelona-92 Olympic Games. And, above all, they feel comfortable, beyond the discomfort of accessing the top of the mountain.
Comfortable and noisy
Comfortable and noisy, as Xavi himself admitted in the last two games. With Antwerp, where he started everything, and with Celta, the definitive beginning of that connection. And where football did not reach, it did reach, as Xavi reiterated several times, “the epic because people continued to cheer and continued to have faith.”
That is the flame that burned the sky on Saturday in Montjuïc, a stadium that already has its first big night to remember. A night that almost belongs to the genre of miracle more than football. “This shows the generational change that is being experienced even in society,” said the Barça coach, seeking readings that go beyond purely tactical ones.
“This is a generation that does not give up. In this club, and with a 0-2, the game was considered lost and it was even 0-3”
Barça coach
Victory is not understood from the blackboard but from the skin. “This is a generation that does not give up. In this club, and with a 0-2, the game was considered lost and it was even 0-3,” revealed Xavi. However, they fell 3-2, mentally clean as those young boys and from the house like “Gavi, who symbolizes the comeback, Balde, Lamine, Araujo…”, of old ghosts that distressed the institution.
“It’s a tremendous turning point of winning character. It’s not just about playing football well, it’s about bringing out the character, the epic and the faith, we also have that.”
Barça coach
“We must rebel against these things, they do not have to be established,” demanded the coach. And the public, even before the team itself, was the one who rebelled. It is not known how many are members, tourists, passing fans or what status because the club does not provide the list of subscribers who attend each match. But the figure almost always remains stable.
The first day against Cádiz there were 39,603; the second against Betis, 45,055 attended (current record); the third with Antwerp was 40,989 and on Saturday the visit of Celta brought about the presence of 43,272 fans. In other words, an average of 42,229 spectators are registered for each game that Barça plays in its provisional home.
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“This generation fights to the end, they are young people and from home, it is a tremendous turning point of winning character. It is not just about playing football well, it is about bringing out the character, the epic and the faith, we also have that “Xavi confessed. He did not mention Madrid, but it was not necessary either.
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