Flawless Barcelona reclaim LaLiga at hostile Espanyol: What’s next for the Catalan giants?
A comfortable 4-2 win over Espanyol saw the Catalan giants lift the LaLiga trophy for the first time since 2019. Unfortunately, Barcelona’s league title celebrations were cut short as the atmosphere quickly turned hostile. Fans swarmed the pitch and amidst the hisses, boos and insults of the aggrieved Espanyol fans, Barcelona players escaped to the dressing room and continued the festivities there.
For Barcelona, out of all stadiums to win the league, Espanyol’s RCDE stadium ranks highly on the list. After their own, the Nou Camp, or possibly Real Madrid’s Bernabeu, it doesn’t get sweeter than winning at local rivals Espanyol. Beyond sharing a city, the two sides share a rich history. Barcelona was denied the title in 2007 due to a very late goal by Espanyol, and in 2020, when Espanyol was relegated, the final blow was dealt at the Nou Camp.
Even if Barcelona hadn’t won yesterday, they have established such a convincing lead at the top of the table that clinching the title was inevitable. Currently 14 points clear of 2nd place Real Madrid with four games to play, Barcelona have been exceptional this season. Astonishingly, they have only conceded 13 goals the entire season, partially due to their outstanding defence and largely due to the heroics of a reformed Marc-Andre ter Stegen. Like Samson, he seemed to lose his powers when he lost his hair however his hair transplant has facilitated the resurgence of a goalkeeper who now has a valid claim to be considered the world’s best. He has made countless remarkable saves this season and at the Nou Camp, he has only conceded twice.
Xavi has transformed this Barcelona side. They are now incredibly tough to break down. Prior to Xavi, this side had a weak spine and had been traumatised by harsh European defeats three seasons in a row to Roma, Liverpool and Bayern Munich. The ex-Barcelona midfielder reimplemented strict dressing room rules and restored order and discipline to the training ground.
Xavi also recruited sensibly. In a summer of financial turmoil for the club, Jules Koundé, Raphinha and most notably, Robert Lewandowski were all recruited and have proved enormously successful. The Polish striker had a record-breaking start to life in La Liga, scoring 13 goals in his first 12 games. His goal-scoring rate has since slowed down, but he is still the league’s prolific finisher with 21 goals to his name.
Even though Barcelona have convincingly won the league, they are not the finished article and this summer there is work to be done in order to sustain what they currently have as well as building upon it.
Barcelona’s approach to winning the league this system can be described as pragmatic rather than the beautiful tiki-taka style employed by the sides that Xavi used to play in himself. This season, Barcelona have won by a 1-0 scoreline 11 times. A La Liga record. Whilst their defence has been impeccable, there is an argument that when Lewandowski is having an off day, his support cast need to do more. After Lewandowski, Barcelona’s next top scorer is Raphinha on seven. In order to defend the title and really compete in Europe next season, a greater contribution is required from Barcelona’s wingers. As well as this, 1-0 wins can easily become 1-1, turning three points into one. Without some of ter-Stegen’s masterclasses this season, it is very possible that the title race would still be on.
Barcelona also has squad logistics to deal with this summer. Veteran Sergio Busquets is leaving the club after 15 years. Jordi Alba could also be on the way out. Replacements will be required for both of those players and new leaders will have to step up in the dressing room. Ronald Araujo will be expected to take a leading role, alongside Frenkie de Jong, Pedri and ter-Stegen as the new era of Barcelona takes flight.
For Barcelona to really progress, they need to succeed in Europe. In recent years, this has been their Achilles heel. This season especially was disappointing for them. They crashed out in the group stage of the Champions League, losing heavily to Bayern Munich and falling short to Inter Milan. Dropping into the Europa League, they then lost to Manchester United and tumbled out of all European competition. Whilst this allowed them to focus on winning La Liga, a club of Barcelona’s standards needs to do better. This summer, Xavi will need to recruit some big personalities and serious quality to allow Barca to compete with the likes of Manchester City and Bayern Munich in Europe.
This has been Xavi’s first full season and Barcelona has a league title to show for it. There is no doubt that Xavi will continue to take Barcelona forwards and European progression will be part of that. For now, Barcelona are going to celebrate their first league title in four years. The future is certainly bright.
By Nicky Helfgott / @NickyH3lfgott on Twitter
