As Dani Olmo wheeled away in celebration, three taps of the wrist said it all.
He had been a Barcelona player for 18 days by the time he finally made his debut on Tuesday night, and two La Liga games had passed him by. Following myriad contractual issues, frustration building as the wait for his registration went on, his impressive second-half showing arose from a desperation to make up for lost time.
A trip to face Rayo Vallecano — where Bournemouth head coach Andoni Iraola’s high-press legacy lives on through his former assistant Inigo Perez — is a tough introduction into La Liga, even for a Spain international. Rayo are always well drilled, competitive, and give you a high-tempo, street-football game that provides a test of technical ability, the crowd on top of the players and the pitch dimensions as small as they can be.
That Olmo emerged not only unscathed but brimming with confidence says a lot about the talent and resolve of Barcelona’s newest forward.
Even with Olmo watching on, there were clear signs from Hansi Flick’s first two games in charge that the 26-year-old would have a home at the heart of Barcelona’s build-up play.
In a 2-1 win over Athletic Club, the most common in-possession approach was to see Alejandro Balde push on down the left-hand side, while Jules Kounde held back to form a back-three. This left the talented Marc Bernal as the sole receiver behind the first line of pressure, with Pau Cubarsi the main source of distribution from defence.
As Balde pushed on, left-winger Ferran Torres had freedom to roam inside, leaving Barcelona with as many as four options in central areas. All the while, Balde and the right-winger — in this instance Lamine Yamal — held the width to stretch the opposition defensive structure, opening up the gaps to punch line-breaking passes through.
The idea was much the same against Rayo, but Flick’s team struggled to maintain possession in a congested midfield without Olmo in the first half. Left-back Gerard Martin, in for Balde, was a more conservative choice and did not get forward to provide the width as often, illustrated by the pass network below.
On a pitch five metres narrower than that at Barcelona’s temporary home of Montjuic, and without that extra opposition-stretcher from full-back, passes into the centre were largely crowded out by an energetic Rayo midfield, with only Pedri as a truly natural midfield receiver — as opposed to traditional wingers Raphinha and Torres — in those tight spaces.
In the face of such difficulties in build-up, it took Olmo 10 seconds to stamp his technical authority on the game, spinning away from a challenge with his first touch after his introduction at half-time. He might have even been awarded a penalty later in the same sequence of play, going to ground after jinking around the outstretched leg of Florian Lejeune.
Either way, more comfortable dropping into deeper areas than Torres, his movement and press resistance with his back to goal provided an almost instant solution to the clog in the midfield, able to pull players away from the centre before driving into space.
More generally, Olmo was a seamless fit into the in-possession shape, moving in alongside Pedri as one of the advanced midfielders. As his touch map below suggests, he was largely responsible for making movements into the right half-space, where he formed a threatening triangle with Kounde and Yamal out wide.
He drifted into plenty of combinations across the pitch and out wide to make sure there was a passing option to help the team move forward, while his four touches in the opposition penalty area could only be bettered by Yamal and Raphinha (both five) in the second half, illustrating the attacking drive he can bring while helping to stabilise the build-up.
His performances for Spain at Euro 2024 underlined his destructive qualities from such a role, ending the competition as the joint-top scorer with three goals. Finishes against Georgia and Germany in particular combined subtle changes of direction in tight spaces with precise finishing on either foot.
Olmo’s winner in Vallecas was another curling effort into the corner, coming after a thunderous strike from 35 yards that hit the crossbar. Across a five-year stint at RB Leipzig, he maintained a healthy average of 2.9 shots per game, with over half of those coming from outside the penalty area.
“When he came on, you saw that we had more control,” said Flick. “He brings that; his ball possession is really safe, but he also knows how to score. For a midfield player, it’s not normal, but he’s really good at combining both of those things.”
A shining example of that ball retention and “control” in tight spaces came late on in the game after his left-footed strike had given Barcelona the lead.
As Rayo looked to be aggressive and nick the ball back further up the pitch in search of an equaliser, Olmo dropped from his usual No 8 role into a deeper position to help with the build-up. Drifting into the pocket of space behind the strikers, he creates an option for Cubarsi to escape the press.
As the ball approaches, Olmo glances over his shoulder to see Pathe Ciss moving in. He plants his right foot and swivels his hips in frame one, looking as if he will spin around the outside.
Sensing the momentum of his opponent, he lets the ball run and flicks it back through his own legs and inside. Having committed to the challenge, Ciss can’t change direction in time and instead charges into Olmo and gives away the foul.
Able to bring that tight-space awareness and intelligent twisting-and-turning to most places on the pitch, Olmo can double up as a tempo-setter and a match-winner.
With the freedom to operate across Flick’s flexible midfield, expect to see him involved in most phases of play.
Things were not all rosy from Barcelona’s third-consecutive victory to start the season; a season-ending anterior cruciate ligament injury to Bernal, who has played the ‘Busquets’ role magnificently in the opening weeks, leaves a gaping hole at the base of midfield that will need cover.
Flick has options to play that position and we might see Pedri, Pablo Torre or even Marc Casado drop into the No 6 position to allow Olmo to continue causing havoc further up the pitch. Fermin Lopez, who scored six times on his way to Olympic gold for Spain, may have an attacking role to play, while Gavi and Frenkie de Jong are still to return.
Even in just 45 minutes, Olmo practically secured his starting berth, whatever the midfield structure. Without Bernal, Barcelona need his experience, balance and the destruction he brings in equal measure.
GO DEEPER
Barcelona briefing: Olmo’s perfect start, Pedri shines again, misery for Marc Bernal
(Top photo: Diego Souto/Getty Images)
