Xavi got it wrong against Elche but Barcelona didn’t panic

Photo by Jose Breton/Pics Action/NurPhoto via Getty ImagesThe sign of a good manager, especially a young one, is to admit his mistakes, and make changes while there’s still a chance to win the game.

Against Elche, Xavi got it wrong with his decision to play Gavi on the wing.

Just because it worked before when you had no other options, doesn’t mean it’s the right choice under normal circumstances.

Having Gavi out wide threw the whole team out of balance. It limited what Ousmane Dembele could do on the right side, while offering no attacking threat on the left.

An unintended, but no unrelated consequence, was one of the worst games we’ve seen from Pedri in a Barcelona shirt. The young Spaniard…