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Is Bojan Krkic going to stay at Barcelona? I’m afraid Barca has some players waiting in the wings and Bojan’s time at Barca might be fading. There’s no question Bojan can play, but is he a star? Does he fit into Coach Pep Guardiola’s plans? Does Barca need him? If there’s a tap-in, then there’s Bojan. Goals all count the same, nothing wrong with an easy finish, right? The player made the run. The player followed up the shot. Michael Owen has made a career out of it, why can’t Bojan. However, for Bojan, he’s going to have to score some bigger goals. And even though he’s still young, he isn’t going to get as much leeway anymore. The clock is starting to tick. The Camp Nou won’t stand for anything but the best. He’s going to have to score good, big-time goals, otherwise, somone else will replace him. Bojan has had a solid two years with the first team. He’s had a chance to learn from Ronaldinho, Eto’o, Henry, and play at the highest level in some of the biggest games and at some of the most hallowed arenas. For Barcelona, as they played their games in the United States during the preseason tour, I’m sure Guardiola and his coaching staff were trying to figure out what they should do with Bojan Krkic. He was on fire about a year and half ago, brimming with confidence, but he has lost his edge. Do they loan him out or keep him with the first team? Versus the Seattle Sounders, Bojan made a wonderful run behind the defense to nearly score off a perfect pass by Messi. Yet, it just seems when he was in form he would have scored – maybe dribbled around or chipped the keeper. He has a tendency to almost score, but not score. I remember watching Patrick Klivert get booed off the park at the Camp Nou. He missed a few chances and was losing the ball. Klivert came back in another game and scored, redeemed himself. This is what Bojan needs to do. While Bojan is just 18 years old, he’s already played in 54 games for the first team. He will have to turn the corner soon and live up to the high expectations or I think he’ll be sold. Although Bojan is quick and has a nose for goal, he was unable to turn numerous chances into goals against the Sounders. He just seemed off, or not as clever and savvy as Henry and Messi. Yes, those are two amazing players, but Barcelona has a pipeline of players coming through, and they all seem to have more talent – believe it or not – than Bojan. Those young players played in the second half for Barcelona against the LA Galaxy, the Sounders, and Chivas, with Pedro and Jeffren Suarez both scoring against the Sounders. Then there’s Jonathan Dos Santos, the younger brother of Giovani Dos Santos, who looks to have the ability to create and score goals, too. Although he plays in a deeper midfield position than Bojan, he’s capable of playing upfront. Bojan had a rough patch at the Camp Nou during the middle of the season last year. He missed some chances and started to lose the ball much too easily. His head was down and he was even subbed out on one occasion. He lost his confidence. Hopefully Bojan will find his way again and not end up farmed out or sold like Giovani Dos Santos, who, like Bojan, was on a tear for a while. Giovani was even compared to Ronaldinho before he was let go. One thing I like about Bojan is he’s a classy player who seems to look up to the older players at Barcelona. In the recent friendly versus Chivas, he scored a tap-in, but he didn’t celebrate wildly. He did rush to Dani Alves to praise him for the cross though. Bojan does seem to fit in well with the Barcelona family. He has no attitude. He’s a team player. He’s young. Maybe they will give him another year. Maybe Bojan needs to get a little bit of swagger and attitude into his game. Get a few yellow cards. Make a few strong tackles. Chase down defenders like Eto’o used to do. Perhaps that will make the Camp Nou happy and the adulation will boost his confidence so he’ll do the unexpected and help Barca win more games. |