5 reasons Barcelona won't reach the UEFA Champions League final in 2018

#2 Over-reliance on Messi

Valverde's tactical system relies heavily on Messi's brilliance

The problems spoken about till now – Lack of squad depth, Dearth of creativity in midfield, Suarez’s struggles – all contribute to placing a ridiculous amount of burden on Messi’s shoulders.

Coutinho unavailable in the UEFA Champions League? No problem, give the ball to Messi. Creativity lacking in midfield? No problem, he will drop deep, give the ball to Messi. Suarez struggling to score? No problem, he gets into shooting positions, give the ball to Messi. Unable to break down the opposition and desperately need a goal from a set piece? No problem, he scores freekicks, give the ball to Messi.

The harsh truth is, if Messi is unavailable due to suspension/injury, or kept quiet by brilliant tactics, this Barca team is severely short of creativity. In El Clasico in December, Kovacic succeeded (if only for 45 minutes) in keeping Messi quiet by relentless man-marking. In the UCL, Chelsea’s brilliant zonal marking boosted by N’Golo Kante kept Messi quiet at Camp Nou.

If your team had to depend on one player in the world, there is no one better than Leo to lean on. Yet even the best can have a quiet day or be unavailable – and if that happens, it’s hard to see where the spark comes from for Barcelona.