The post-Lionel Messi era was always likely to be fraught with difficulty for Barcelona, and that is how things turned out.
However, while a season without silverware is not what the fans expect, there are plenty of reasons why they should be optimistic about the future. Here are our grades for Barcelona’s season.
Players
Having been heavily reliant on Messi during his time with the club, it was inevitable that Barca would suffer a drop-off in performances.
Despite this, while financial issues hindered their ability to bring in players last summer, no one could have predicted how far they would fall.
Xavi’s appointment as manager in November steadied the ship, and a productive January transfer window helped the club climb the La Liga table.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Ferran Torres proved to be inspired signings, taking some of the attacking responsibility off Memphis Depay’s shoulders.
Adama Traore was less successful after arriving on loan from Wolverhampton Wanderers, again demonstrating that his end product is poor.
From a collective viewpoint, Barca’s players can be proud of turning their season around to claim second spot in La Liga and a place in the 2022/23 Champions League.
Grade: C
Manager
Barcelona’s decision to stick with Ronald Koeman last summer was a big mistake, and his exit in November came as no surprise.
Koeman left Barca ninth in the table and in severe danger of missing out on Champions League qualification for the first time since 2003.
The club’s decision to appoint Xavi was extremely risky, particularly as his only managerial experience was in Qatar.
However, the decision appears to have been an inspired one, with Xavi losing just eight of his 38 games in charge of the Catalan giants.
Given the situation he inherited, the swiftness he had Barcelona moving in the right direction again was extremely impressive.
Xavi now has the chance to make further improvements this summer to ensure the club mounts a serious challenge for silverware next term.
Grade: B
Standout results
Barca’s first defeat in 19 years against Rayo Vallecano marked the end of Koeman’s underwhelming time in charge of the club.
While results improved a little, a 3-0 defeat at Bayern Munich in December ended their interest in this season’s Champions League.
Xavi freshened up his squad in the January transfer window and was quickly rewarded as Barca ran out 4-2 winners at home to Atletico Madrid.
A 4-1 win at Valencia and 4-0 home success over Athletic Bilbao 4–0 were further signs that Xavi had the club heading in the right direction.
The standout result of the season was on March 20, as Barcelona triumphed 4-0 against Real Madrid at the Bernabeu Stadium.
Despite losing 2-0 at home to Villarreal in their final league game, Barcelona ended the campaign second in the table.
Grade: C
Transfer business
Depay and Sergio Aguero were the main arrivals last summer, but neither move paid dividends for the club.
Depay’s tally of 13 goals and two assists in 38 appearances again demonstrated that he is not a genuinely top-class forward.
Aguero played just four games before being forced to retire from football due to a heart condition – a devastating blow for both the player and club.
Aubameyang’s arrival from Arsenal in January was a gamble given how poorly he had been playing, but he has returned to form with a bang with Barca.
Torres also contributed to Barcelona’s resurgence in 2022, but Traore was a big flop and he will not be signing a permanent deal.
All things considered, Barca have done well in the transfer market since Messi’s departure, but more quality signings are needed this summer.
Grade: B-
Expectations vs reality
Barcelona fans expect to win trophies, so finishing the season empty-handed could be viewed as failure.
However, that would be a churlish argument given where Koeman left the club when he was fired in October.
Their subsequent exit from the Champions League was not unexpected, but failure to progress beyond the last eight in the Europa League was disappointing.
Despite this, Barca fans cannot be too disappointed about where the club finished at the end of the La Liga campaign.
While a 13-point gap to Madrid highlighted the disparity between the two clubs, it would be no surprise to see Barca finish much closer next time around.
Xavi has re-instilled pride in a club that was in danger of imploding – the expectations will be cranked back up to their normal levels next term.
Grade: C
Overall grade
As we have already alluded to, it is difficult to be too critical about Barcelona’s failure to win trophies this season.
Koeman was an accident waiting to happen as manager, and the only real surprise about his departure was that it took so long to happen.
Xavi has quickly laid the foundations for Barcelona to challenge in La Liga, but success in the Champions League may take longer to achieve.
Grade: C
What they need
While Barca did well to recover from the disastrous start to the season, it would be wrong to assume their squad is perfect.
Promising youngsters such as Pedri and Gavi will save Barca millions in the transfer market, but more new arrivals are needed if they want to knock Madrid off their perch.
Prolific Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski appears to be their main summer target, and he would be a superb addition.
Wolves midfielder Ruben Neves and Leeds United winger Raphinha are other high-profile names linked with the club.
Xavi may have to sacrifice a couple of talented players to bring in the new faces he wants, but do not be surprised to see Barca field a much stronger line-up next season.
Challenging for the La Liga title and a good run in the Champions League will be the minimum expectation for the 2022/23 campaign.
