“Barcelona is a very old city in which you can feel the weight of history; it is haunted by history. You cannot walk around it without perceiving it.” – Carlos Ruiz Zafon
A city with such a rich history ought to have a number of historic outposts. And one such, is FC Barcelona. Futbol Club Barcelona, formed by a group of Swiss, English and Catalan footballers led by Joan Gamper, has been the identity of Catalan nationalism.
The club, over the years, has had a plethora of talent in its ranks, people who have changed football forever. From the likes of Paulinho Alcantara, Laszlo Kubala, Luis Suarez (Spanish Player in the 1960s), Carles Rexach to modern legends such as Pep Guardiola, Ronald Koeman, Ronaldo Nazario, Rivaldo, Romario, Txiki Begiristain, Hristo Stoichkov, Michael Laudrup, Luis Figo, Patrick Kluivert, Xavi Hernandez, Puyol, Andres Iniesta, Victor Valdes, Ronaldinho, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Gerard Pique, Sergio Busquets, Thierry Henry and many more. And three of the greatest of them all in each era, namely Johan Cruyff, Diego Maradona and the best player ever to have the ball at his feet, Lionel Messi.
The club had started its trade at the Camp de la Industria before moving on to the Camp de Les Corts, and finally the Camp Nou, which is functional till date and is the biggest stadium in Europe with a capacity of 99,354. The club youth academy named La Masia has been the source of some exceptional talent in the world, providing key players to various teams all across Europe.
The Blaugranas as they are generally known, have been marked as the third most valuable sports team in the world at $4.07 billion and the third most profitable football team with an annual turnover of €648.3 million. The 25 La Liga, 30 Copa del Rey and 5 UCL winning side enjoy a fierce rivalry with Spanish capital based side Real Madrid, an envy that extends way beyond the horizons of football into the realms of politics and Spanish Civil War days, and hence is the motto, “Mes que un Club” (More than a Club).
2018/19 Season
Club captain Lionel Messi, in his inaugural speech at the Camp Nou at the start of the season, expressed his desire to finish his unfinished business in the Champions League. In the quest of the same, and in fact the precious treble of the Champions League, La Liga and Copa del Rey, a feat they have achieved twice in the past decade, the club has shown some great intent in the transfer market and solid form in the initial stages of the season. Various utility players have been roped in in the likes of Malcom, Clement Lenglet, Arthur Melo and Arturo Vidal as well as got rid of some dead wood with Andre Gomes, Paulinho, Aleix Vidal, Gerard Deulofeu and Yerry Mina all leaving the club. Club legend Andres Iniesta would probably be the one missed the most among those who left as others have aptly been replaced or even upgraded. Promotion of academy players like Carles Alena and Ricard Puig also shows some exquisite quality coming from La Masia.
Strengths
The biggest strength of the team has been the quality of its core squad and the cohesion between them. The core team comprising of Messi, Busquets, Pique, Alba, Umtiti, Ter Stegen, Luis Suarez and Ivan Rakitic has been there since years and possess a good understanding between them. The attacking lineup will be the key that boasts the likes of Messi, Suarez, Dembele, Malcom, Coutinho and Denis. The style of Barcelona’s play has also been very consistent over the years playing a possession based passing gameplay that has proved to be extremely successful in recent history.
Weaknesses
A major weakness in the squad is having an underqualified manager in Ernesto Valverde. Valverde, though being able to provide a solid defensive output, has lacked an attacking nudge and can be lacking pragmatism as seen in the UCL semifinal against AS Roma. He has been over reliant on Messi to provide some magic for winning games, and was probably lucky in a few games having maintained his unbeaten streak till a game where Messi was rested.
Summer 2018/19 Transfers
Players IN
Arturo Vidal (from Bayern Munich)
Clement Lenglet (from Sevilla)
Malcom (from Girondins de Bordeaux)
Arthur Melo (from Gremio)
Carles Alena (promoted from Barcelona B)
Players OUT
Andres Iniesta (to Vissel Kobe)
Andre Gomes (to Everton on Loan)
Paulinho (to Guangzhou Evergrande)
Gerard Deulofeu (to Watford)
Yerry Mina (to Everton)
Lucas Digne (to Everton)
Marlon Santos (to Sassuolo)
Aleix Vidal (to Sevilla)
Douglas (to Sivasspor)
Adrian Ortola (to Deportivo la Coruna)
Summer Acquisitions
Arturo Vidal (from Bayern Munich)
A short term upgrade on Paulinho, Vidal has been roped in to bring a physical dimension to the Barca front 6, something that is virtually non-existent in the other options bar Luis Suarez. The ex-Bayern Chilean is a world-class box-to-box midfielder and possesses a strong winning mentality. Vidal mustered an 89% pass accuracy in the Bundesliga last season, with 6 goals to add to his tally. He can be an encouraging addition to the side. Being an Anti-Madridista just helps his case amongst the fanbase.
Clement Lenglet (from Sevilla)
A sublime defender from La Liga, Lenglet is being seen as the long term heir to the position of club legend Gerard Pique. With Valverde not being content with the shaky form of Mina last season, Lenglet was shortlisted due to his impressive performances for the Andalusian side as he had the experience of playing in Europe and was well versed with the opponents. He can be a very effective squad player in case the regular starters need some rest.
Malcom (from Girondins de Bordeaux)
A fan appeasing arrival, nobody exactly could figure out why Malcom was snatched from the jaws of AS Roma apart from the reason that the board wanted vengeance over the UCL defeat. Whatever be the reason, Malcom is a quality addition to the side, who offers as a good substitute for Lionel Messi in case the legend is fatigued. A strong left foot that helped him score 9 goals in Ligue 1 last season, 5 of them from outside the box. Malcom also scored for Barcelona in the Spanish super cup, and he alongside Ousmane Dembele would be the key to the future plans of the club.
Arthur Melo (from Gremio)
Talking of the future, the prospect of taking up the role left by the legendary Xavi Hernandez is being visualized in young Arthur Melo. A relatively unknown until the break of this season, Arthur was scouted by the Barcelona scouts in South America who have unearthed high quality prolific talent such as Mauro Icardi, Neymar and Lionel Messi among others. Arthur has shown a good confidence and skill on and off the ball in the early season, and it would be no surprise seeing him pull the strings from the midfield in a couple of seasons.
Carles Alena (promoted from Barcelona B)
The scouts may be the best, but what makes Barcelona great is the youth system at La Masia. Having provided the likes of Valdes, Xavi, Iniesta, Messi, Pique, Puyol, Thiago, Icardi, Busquets, Alba, Pedro, Fabregas, Roberto and Pep Guardiola himself in the last 30 years or so, the factory of talent has produced yet another gem in Carles Alena. The midfielder has a unique set of skills and understanding of the game. He showed his impressive stint in the limited time he got last season, and would looking forward to make full use of the opportunity this time around to cement his place in the starting XI of the upcoming decade.
Key Players
Lionel Messi
You don’t need to know who is the key man when you have Lionel Messi in the ranks, do you? The Argentine is the mojo of the team ever since his debut in 2004, and has been the pivotal figure in the side more so since the retirement of Xavi. Now that Iniesta is gone too, he will be having the additional burden of leadership but will be eased by the availability of resources at his disposal. The leader in every attacking stat in the league last season, he is the reason why every team that faces Barcelona is expected to end up having unfinished business with them.
2017-18 season
Appearance: 36
Goals: 34
Assists: 12
Key Passes per Game: 2.4
Dribbles per game: 5.1
Marc Andre ter Stegen
The German steward is right there among the elite goalkeepers, and his calm on the ball is just a reflection of his goalkeeping abilities. He is quite simply the second best player in the squad.
2017-18 season
Appearance: 37
Clean Sheets: 19
Goals Conceded: 28
Saves per 90: 2.36
Saves per Goal: 4.11
Claim Success: 88%
Sergio Busquets
“You watch the game, you don’t see Busquets. You watch Busquets, you see the whole game.”
This probably explains all the contribution the vice-captain does for the team.
2017-18 season
Appearance: 31
Pass Accuracy: 90.5%
Total defensive errors: 0
Passes per match: 72.3
Predicted Line-up
Predicted Finish
La Liga: Winners
Copa del Rey: Winners
Champions League: Finalists
Top Scorer: Lionel Messi
Top Assist Provider: Lionel Messi/Philipe Coutinho
Fixtures
| Aug 19 | Alaves | Home |
| Aug 26 | Real Valladolid | Away |
| Sep 02 | SD Huesca | Home |
| Sep 16 | Real Sociedad | Away |
| Sep 23 | Girona | Home |
| Sep 26 | Leganes | Away |
| Sep 30 | Athletic Club | Home |
| Oct 07 | Valencia | Away |
| Oct 21 | Sevilla | Home |
| Oct 28 | Real Madrid | Home |
| Nov 04 | Rayo Vallecano | Away |
| Nov 11 | Real Betis | Home |
| Nov 25 | Atletico Madrid | Away |
| Dec 02 | Villarreal | Home |
| Dec 09 | Espanyol | Away |
| Dec 16 | Levante | Away |
| Dec 22 | Celta Vigo | Home |
| Jan 06 | Getafe | Away |
| Jan 13 | Eibar | Home |
| Jan 20 | Leganes | Home |
| Jan 27 | Girona | Away |
| Feb 03 | Valencia | Home |
| Feb 10 | Athletic Club | Away |
| Feb 17 | Real Valladolid | Home |
| Feb 24 | Sevilla | Away |
| Mar 03 | Real Madrid | Away |
| Mar 10 | Rayo Vallecano | Home |
| Mar 17 | Real Betis | Away |
| Mar 31 | Espanyol | Home |
| Apr 03 | Villarreal | Away |
| Apr 07 | Atletico Madrid | Home |
| Apr 14 | SD Huesca | Away |
| Apr 21 | Real Sociedad | Home |
| Apr 24 | Alaves | Away |
| Apr 28 | Levante | Home |
| May 05 | Celta Vigo | Away |
| May 12 | Getafe | Home |
| May 19 | Eibar | Away |
Beyond Minute 90 