Barcelona are currently in the second spot of the La Liga table and will consider themselves a tad fortunate as the level of consistency they have shown probably did not merit that. With the top of the table looking unusually crowded, the Nou Camp outfit will be wary of dropping any more winnable points. But we know how strong they are and will expect to sharpen up sooner rather than later. With the action set to resume in a couple of days let us take a look at the players who have impressed till now and the uncharacteristic couple who have come up short.
STARS
LIONEL MESSI
The Argentine genius has strutted his usual stuff and finds himself on 15 goals already with 5 assists thrown in. He has developed his game further and controls the tempo of the game mostly, whilst preserving enough energy to burst into vintage Leo Messi runs. He has been phenomenal in the UCL and extremely consistent in the League. Will be key as usual in their quest for glory.
LUIS SUAREZ
The former Liverpool man had gone off the boil slightly but his start to the season cushioned the blow of Messi’s initial absence to an extent. He shows no sign of stopping and is hungrier than ever. With already 10 goals and 5 assists he has been integral in their wins and if he can continue this partnership with his fellow attackers, Real better take cover.
DUDS
SERGI ROBERTO AND THE DEFENCE
While the whole of the Barca defence has been in shambles recently, the defensive attributes of young Sergi have been called into question multiple numbers of times. It is largely Barca’s ill-judgement wherein they decided against conventionally replacing Dani Alves. Roberto is great going forward but his error-prone and risky style of defending has cost Barcelona heavily twice already. He has to cut down on his errors along with the rest of the defence including ter Stegen and Umtiti who have looked extremely vulnerable without Pique and Alba.
SERGIO BUSQUETS
A large part of the difficulties being faced by the back-line is the surprising loss of form of Busquets. His impenetrable calm and collected process of snuffing out an attack and recycling possession were the backbone of Barcelona’s game and he has come up short in that regard. He has looked lethargic, he has committed uncharacteristic errors and his positioning has been shockingly off-the-mark. It is imperative that Busquets regains his form as the whole machinery of Barca works perfectly if he fulfils his role adequately.
