If the pandemic is the bar to compare the world today with respect to what was yesterday (the previous one 2020, of course), the Messi era is the bar that serves to measure the sports state of Barça. Barça has returned to the old days. To the good times that were lived with the Argentine star. When goals were marked by Porrillo and titles were collected. With a substantial difference: the dependence of a footballer, in this case, is less.
The top scorer of Barça in the league has been Robert Lewandowski. The Champions League has been Raphinha. That of the Copa del Rey, Ferran Torres. And that of the Super Cup, Lamine Yamal, tied with Raphinha but with less minutes of play. A different leader for every occasion.
But Hansi Flick is not formed. It is not enough with those four players, although he had six. The coach asked Deco, the sports director, at least one reinforcement. To have more alternatives and to raise the level that Ansu Fati and Pau Víctor gave, that the final have not become a serious competence to demand others and discuss ownership. The coach left Barcelona by setting that additional extreme as a priority. Although Deco has first closed the signing of a goalkeeper. Joan Garcia, the goal of Espanyol, has sprouted as a market opportunity that we had to take advantage of the price he had: the 25 million of its termination clause.
The three Barça strikers have just celebrated a goal to Borussia Dortmund. / Valentine Enrich / Spo
Among the four starting strikers, and the others have placed the Flick team Among the most prolific and devastating in the history of the club. This Barça has put 174 goals, a figure to which the club has not approached for eight years, To the last campaign of the Trident Messi-Suárez-Neymar (2016-17), which for three seasons put their boots. The team added 171 goals; In the previous two he scored 173 goals (15-16) and 175 (14-15).
It was the Barça del Trident and also, of course, the Barça de Luis Enrique, which ten years later, He has reissued with the Paris Saint Germaín the title of the Champions League which conquered with Barça in 2015. There was only a similar precedent of such a real production, and for now the absolute reference of the club.
Raphinha, Lamine Yamal and Lewandowski applaud the fans of Barça in Montilivi after defeating the Girona. / Dani Barbeito / Sp
Pep, Luis Enrique and Hansi
The most scorer in history was that of The last campaign of Pep Guardiola (2011-12) that achieved 190 goals in 64 games. A Messi (73 goals alone) He was accompanied by Alexis (15), Pedro (13) and Villa (9), but also added Cesc (15) and Xavi (14). The average is also the highest in history (2.96 goals per game), which beat The historical referential brand of the 1959-60 season (143 goals in 49 games and an average of 2.91).
In the current context, Barça's comparison with homologous clubs diminishes the numbers of this season. The second most filmmaker in Europe has been Paris Saint Germain (152, 22 less), followed by Bayern Munich (138), Madrid (137) and Liverpool (123).
Messi, Suárez and Neymar, with their children, after the conquest of the 2017 Cup in Vicente Calderón. / Valenti Enrich / Submitted
From the desert machine
Flick's team, therefore, has been third in the ranking of marked goals, behind those directed by Guardiola and Luis Enrique, conferreding a huge value to technical work. Those They had a Messi that increasingly brought together the auction actions, Hence the stratospheric figures he left written, apparently insurmountable. In Luis Enrique's three seasons, along with Luis Suárez and Neymar, the machine produced without stopping. Paradoxically, the year that beat the goals in the League (116), did not conquer the title (16-17). The same thing happened with the fourth year of Guardiola, the most prolific with the 190 goals: the 114 of the championship were insufficient to be champion.
Neither team that scored more goals than Flick, Guardiola de la Liga 11-12 and Luis Enrique de la 16-17, conquered the title, as the German coach has achieved.
Raphinha and Lamine Yamal congratulate Lewandowski after one of his two goals to Athletic in San Mamés. / FCBarcelona
Ernesto Valverde arrived, was reducing the flow of goals from the coach's march until Barça entered the desert which has finally left with the cheerful and careless proposal of Flick. With his future Messi in the field, the label that hits Lamine Yamal's shirt, the best sold by the way.
The youth has erected in the most quoted footballer of the squad without being his top scorer. This facet corresponds to Robert Lewandowski, a specialist, who In San Mamés it exceeded one hundred goals (101) In three seasons with Barça. Raphinha tripled her contribution (from 10 to 34) and Lamine Yamal doubled her (from 7 to 18) compared to the previous year with Xavi Hernández.
The team has been zero in two of the 60 games: in the visit to the Royal Society (1-0) and at home with the Leganés (0-1), which has descended.
Ferran Torres, next to Fermín, after marking the goal that took the final to the extension. / Efe
Among them, plus the invaluable Ferran Torres (19 goals) and Dani Olmo (12), The team has finished 33 of the 60 games with three goals or more, with two Sietes (Al Valladolid and Valencia). His performance has been similar at home and outside, although in the league he has obtained more points of outsider (45) than at home (43). Although the team was unmarked in two games. In two of 60. It is not a bad percentage. In the visit to the Royal Society (1-0) and at home with Leganés (0-1), team descended to Second.
Despite the excellent offensive profitability, and the discussed defensive performance, which Flick does not circumscribe to the defenses, the coach wants signings in the attack. There were only four strikers, plus the Punctual Aid by Dani Olmo and Fermín López, but there were six. Ansu Fati and Pau Victor theoretically doubled the positions of the lead. The coach's words missing – and asking for his signing – to a footballer who can act as an extreme express his discontent with the contribution of both.
Despite the excellent numbers, Flick asks for a striker to have more resources and raise the level of Ansu Fati and Pau Víctor, whom he has barely used.
Ansu Fati talks with Lamine Yamal sitting on the bench in Montjuic as substitutes in the League match between FC Barcelona and Celta. / JORDI COTRINA / EPC
Need for signings
“We have to find more options in this position of those in recent games, “he said on the eve of the San Mamés party, without appointing Ansu Fati. It has been the second least used footballer For him (297 minutes in 11 appearances), just behind Marc Bernal (244 minutes), which was injured on the third day of the League. Pau Víctor has received more opportunities (28), but the total of minutes (398) yields an ridiculous average of interventionsoften in the added time.
Ansu Fati has proven that he does not count at all and before the end of the season, life was already sought to find a new destination. The As Monaco seems to be the place where trying to reimprorate his career after his stay at Brighton (23-24).