This time the team has to cheer for the crowd, not the other way around.

It is clear that today’s match is key to Barça’s season. Getting to the quarterfinals of the Champions League will greatly improve the overall outlook and I have a feeling that the team will exchange a good portion of the pressure that holds it for release. The weight of the club is felt on the legs and heads of the footballers and the proof is that those who have the most fun playing are clearly the two children, Lamine Yamal and Cubans, while veterans look more ‘acollonits’ (you know what I mean, I don’t think it needs translation). Against Mallorca it was difficult again because Barça played as ‘contracted’, tough. This is something that happens more this season at home, in Montjuïc, than outside. Historically, Barça has lost Leagues in Salamanca, Burgos or Córdoba, never in its stadium. But Montjuïc doesn’t feel like its own home and that explains how this League has gone. If not, do the math: just by beating Girona, Villarreal and Granada we’ll be neck and neck at the top of the table with Madrid.

The field factor has not played in Barça’s favor this season and, looking forward to tonight’s match against Naples, I am sure that if it was at the Camp Nou we would be more favorites than Montjuïc. Still, I think we will pass. I don’t recommend thinking that the 1-1 first leg is a treasure to cherish. I think this is a game to go for from the beginning and not fall into the temptation of speculating. To sum up, people will go to the field today knowing how much is being debated, but the recipe I expect is that, this time, it will be the team that will bring the public to the game and not the public. the team. I will make it a point to start the ‘oops!’ from minute 1, even at the risk of not maintaining order. To put it some way, I’d rather watch the seventh knight game than Swan Lake.

Napoli are a good team, of course, but they are not the ‘bogeyman’ either and they need to feel that they are playing away from their environment. In these types of games the coach does not need to alert the player of its importance: the motivation comes naturally. You have to play fearlessly, involving the crowd with determination and without complications. Because, I repeat, going into the quarterfinals, I have the impression that the pressure will be replaced by excitement and that is always good in football.

The field factor is not just support

When I talk about how this season has affected the ‘field factor’ at Barça, who will be up against more options to renew the League title if they only beat Villarreal and Granada, I’m not just talking about ‘caliu . ‘ to Give your fans support. We all know that Montjuïc is not the Camp Nou and we have to accept that too. Even rivals visiting Barcelona admit this as an advantage in their favour. I also mean that in such an open field, players even lose physical references, like shooting while aiming at something. Montjuïc is different, it makes the teams equal. That’s why clubs like Real Sociedad have adapted their stadium as much as possible to classic football, with stands and references nearby.