Barcelona thumped Leganes 5-1 in front of 11,000 reclaiming top spot in La Liga temporarily at least, with Real Madrid playing against Espanyol. Leo Messi scored twice with Neymar and Luis Suarez also getting on the scoresheet.
It wasn;t all smooth sailing and Leganes gave Barcelona a very competitive match. AT times, the Catalans looked shaky at the back and could have conceded more the one.The final scoreline definitely does not tell the full story.
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Here are five talking points from the game:
1) MSN show why bench players are not good enough
It took Messi, Suarez and Neymar 45 minutes to get on the scoresheet against Leganes. The team that played last week at home against another promoted team struggled to score the solitary goal managed in 90 minutes.
Strength in depth was the issue Luis Enrique needed to fix over the summer and the club have certainly invested over the summer, but there seems to be no replacement for the front three of the club.
Paco Alcacer and Arda Turan are decent players but they just aren't on the same wavelength as the three kings. The MSN trio are now in their 3rd season together and their partnership has developed into something almost telepathic.
If Enrique is to play Alcacer or Turan he will have to choose from one of the two and ensure at least tow of his main attacking trio are on the pitch.
2) Leganes’ attacking play cost them
What Alaves did so well against Barcelona last week was stopping Barcelona from playing, Yes they didn't have their biggest stars from the off, but they managed to keep their shape even after Messi had come on.
Leganes should have taken a leaf from their book and try to stop Barca from playing. Yes, they were at home and maybe an attacking approach is understandable, given Barca’s susceptibility at the back.
But Enrique’s men are one of the best, if not the best in the world on the counterattack. There is no substitute for a solid defence in the game and if Leganes had used a smarter approach to the game they might have nicked a point.
At the end of the day, goal difference does not play a major role in La Liga. It will all come down to the head to head record, but this is a harsh lesson learnt.
3) Sergio Busquets is someone Barca can’t do without
There are some who might suggest Barcelona didn’t need Busquets, as they managed to score so many without the central midfielder. But the game was not as comfortable for the Catalans as you would think.
Apart from the flashes of brilliance for the goals, Barca were under the pump many a time during the game, with Leganes playing a high press game against the Catalans The passing through the centre had no composure in Barca's case.
A lot of their attacks came from winning the ball in midfield and Barca couldn’t dominate the play like they usually do. Busquets is very calm under pressure and can always find a pass to a man who is available.
When Barca do come up against bigger and better opposition, the midfield battle will become more telling. It is in those high-intensity games, where Busquets presence plays an important role.
4) Barcelona's defence still fragile, despite change in formation
The arrival of Samuel Umtiti was supposed to bring the solidarity that Barca have been missing at the back arguably since Carles Puyol retired. But while the Frenchman has been impressive, the understanding with his fellow defenders is still in it’s primitive stage
Enrique decided to tweak things around with a 3-5-2 formation with Mascherano and Pique partnering Umtiti in a back three. But the fragility was still there for all to see. Leganes caused a lot of trouble with their high energy play.
The main attacking threat seemed to be coming from the aerial route. Something with high balls in the box just puts off the defenders.In the first half of the game, the backline struggled to keep pace with the Leganes attackers and had to depend on last-ditch tackles.
Surprisingly the solitary goal Leganes scored was through a free-kick, but there were also several silly fouls they gave away around their own area. Enrique still has work to do ahead of their clash against Atletico Madrid next week.
5) Winning La Liga won’t be a walk in the park
Barcelona should have won last year’s title without much fuss but they made it difficult for themselves thanks to a mini-slump in the second half of the campaign. Barca have had a slightly shaky start to this campaign.
They have still not kept a clean sheet in the league and need to sort out their defence. Real Madrid look like a much more competent team as compared to last season. If Barca are to keep their crown it will be a dog fight right to the end.
We have seen that Barca’s strength in depth was tested at home and they were unable to cope against newly promoted Alaves last week. Keeping Messi, Suarez and Neymar fit and firing on all cylinders is a priority for them.
Today was the first time each of them got on the scoresheet in the first half, showing how much the three playing together is important for the club.
