A total of 108 goals. So can anyone stop Pep Guardiola’s ruthlessly efficient machine?
In short, the answer is probably ‘no.’ Last year Barcelona scored ‘just’ 35 goals in their opening 16 games, compared to this year’s 51. They have also dropped fewer points thus far. Real Madrid have pulled off a feat arguably more impressive than the continent’s other champions of last season, Inter Milan, Chelsea and Bayern Munich amongst them, in managing to keep to within touching distance of one of the greatest sides in football history, and probably the greatest in Spain’s history.
This is largely thanks to the signing of David Villa, replacing Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who whilst skilful and elegant on the ball, lacked the urgency and pace that brings out the very best in the Catalan side. The 5-0 thrashing of Real Madrid by Barcelona was a measure of just how good this side are, and as close to football perfection as you are likely to see. Lionel Messi has been in typically astonishing form, with 42 goals this calendar year.
Yet to suggest that a team’s lifting of the league title is merely a formality of them completing their fixtures is one way of inducing a shock transformation in the path of a particular league season. Barcelona, whilst demanding new and original clichés be created to define their form, do have a relatively small squad. Then again, they said that last year, and they only got better as the season wore on, rather than worse.
Real Madrid have been superb as well, with Jose Mourinho managing to make it all the way to December without his fate being sealed. With the last Real Madrid manager to last more than a season leaving the club in 2003 (Vicente del Bosque), the coach of the Madrid giants usually has his fate written within a few weeks or months of the start of his tenure. Last year Manuel Pellegrini’s sacking was decided within a month or so of him having taken up the reins. That Mourinho stands a realistic chance of being at the club at the start of next season says much about his intelligent adaptation to life in Spain. Ever the pragmatist, Mourinho has bought into the club’s philosophy of swift, attacking football and broken with his usual style of play to bring the Bernabeu the footballing feasts they yearn for, with stunning victories over the likes of Racing Santander, Deportivo La Coruna and Athletic Bilbao evidence of this point.
Mourinho may have achieved things few managers could dream of, but overtaking and defeating Guardiola’s Barcelona could prove to be a challenge beyond even the cocky Portuguese.
But it is important to remember La Liga is not just a two team league. If the title race has become a predictable two horse affair, and even with the winning horse easy to forecast, that is due to the brilliance of the top two, rather than the lack of quality of the chasing pack. Europa League holders Atletico Madrid were one of the few sides in the division to strengthen in the summer, but they sit in sixth place. Ahead of them lie Espanyol, whose ‘English’ style of physical and cynical football has earned them few friends but many points. Valencia, under Unai Emery, have made an impressive adaptation to life after Villa and David Silva, with Roberto Soldado and Juan Mata slipping into their respective voids with impressive skill. And Villarreal, under Juan Garrido, have impressed with their free flowing football thanks to the likes of Santi Cazorla, Guiseppe Rossi and Bruno Soriano.
As La Liga heads into the new year, the fascinating contest between Barcelona and Real Madrid will intensify as they continue to pull away from the rest of the league with their remarkable consistency. It is possible of course that Real will manage to overcome the irresistible force that is the current Barcelona side. Then again, some may say it is possible that Jose Mourinho could learn to fly. I’m not sure which I’d put my money on.
