You know expectations are high when you’re unbeaten in eleven games and you’re talking about “getting yourself out of this mess.” And after last season’s brilliance in which Barcelona became only the third team in history to win the three major trophies in one season, the attention paid to possible signs of slipping is all the more magnified. In the big trade of the summer – striker Eto’o out to Inter Milan, Zlatan Ibrahimovic in — Coach Pep Guardiola sought stability, a stability that, compared to last season, may decrease the number of goals scored but should also give Barcelona a valuable weapon when playing teams that sit defensively deep.

Unlike the teams in the English and Italian leagues, Barcelona’s 4-3-3 formation is not a 4-5-1 in disguise. All three of Barcelona’s forwards play forward and the wingers play wide, often on the touchline. This opens up the field and gives Xavi and Iniesta the space they need to control the midfield, maintain possession of the ball over 70% of the game, most of which is spent on their opponent’s side of the pitch.

Last season, Lionel Messi and Samuel Eto’o often switched what would be considered their natural positions, with Messi starting in central position, the nine-spot, and Eto’o (a natural center-forward) starting on the right wing. As a game progressed, Messi’s natural inclination was to drop deep into a more midfield position, an inclination which disrupted the opponents’ defensive marking.

At the highest levels of football, defenses are organized in zonal marking an man-marking is thought of as a negative approach. Still, zonal marking does fall into certain patterns. When a team playing 4-4-2 plays against a team playing 4-4-2, the two center-defenders pick up the two center-forwards, the two central midfielders pick up the two central midfielders, and the wide-midfielders pick each other up. The other two defenders, with the exception of players like Sergio Ramos and Dani Alves who are more comfortable going forward, stay deep to pick up the wide mid-fielders.

As a coach, you are searching for ways to disrupt those patterns that your opponent wants to establish and maintain. If you have a player like Messi on your team, you can do this by setting him up as a “false-nine,” a player who begins the game in the center-forward position but who naturally drops deep into the mid-field. This gives Barcelona an extra man in the midfield and leaves a center-defender with a decision to make: does he follow Messi into the midfield. If he does, he risks leaving space that will be exploited by players like Eto’o and Henry who will turn and run into the free space in the center. If the center-back sits deep and waits for Messi, the Argentine has time to either make a pass or run with the ball at the center-back at full speed.

In trading Eto’o for Zlatan, Coach Pep Guardiola brought in a player who, unlike Eto’o, is a traditional center-forward and will not be able to play the wing. As a result, the space made for Messi by Eto’o’s runs, is no longer available for Messi to exploit. So, the question is, why did Pep make the trade after last year’s history making season? When the “false-nine” system works, it is deadly. Hungary in the 50’s and Cantona’s Manchester are examples of how a deep-working center-forward can disrupt the opposition with devastating results. When the “false-nine” system is flat, however, or when the team is having a flat day, the system can quickly become lifeless and its attack dull. The system also invites other teams to “park the bus” in front of their goal – to put ten men deep in defense and play for a tie.

Enter the Big Swede. With his physical size and abilities, Zlatan can receive the ball and with his strength, turn and hold the defender off the ball while waiting for support. A tall man, Zlatan also offers an aerial threat that can punish teams who sit defensively deep. Ibra’s genius – and why he is worth the millions – comes in the soft touch and vision.

With Ibra, Coach Guardiola has created a second option to the free-flowing, midfield possession oriented, riskier team. With the Big Swede, he has an option for solidity, a strong, traditional center-forward, who feels as comfortable dazzling with touch and vision as he does using his strength and height to grind out a street-fight victory, as there is sure to be this season.