Barcelona had to come from behind twice but score 2 goals in 3 minutes to top Villarreal and stay 1 point behind Madrid for top of La Liga table.
Barcelona enter February alive in three competitions (La Liga, Copa del Rey and Champions League) and they are only side in Spain that can truly say that. Another run of victories similar to the eight they have just reeled off would see Luis Enrique’s side sitting pretty in all of them.
Fighting on all fronts is no mean feat with a number of sides excelling in Spain at the moment, and the 3-2 win over a dangerous Villarreal side, previously unbeaten themselves in 17 games, proved just that.
Sunday’s hard-fought victory, coming back twice from a losing position, was further proof of the backbone Luis Enrique has introduced to a side that was criticized for becoming an easy touch last season. The three wins over Atletico that preceded that win were also testament to that new belief when it comes to decisive games.
Now all eyes will be on the Santiago Bernabeu on Wednesday to see if the fast improving, fourth-placed Sevilla can do the Catalan side a favour by grabbing something in the game in hand Real Madrid have over their main La Liga rival.
If that does not happen the gap between the two will stretch to four points, and you would be forgiven for thinking that the Copa del Rey and Champions League are perhaps the best options for success at Camp Nou this season. However with 17 league games still to play, including a “Clasico” against Real Madrid in Camp Nou in the final fixture of March, Barca need to keep up the pressure on Real Madrid with a win at Athletic Bilbao on Sunday.
Meanwhile on Saturday, Real go to neighbours Atletico Madrid to see if they have the same fighting spirit and tactical know how that took Barca to their three tight victories over the capital’s second club in January. A lot can happen at the top of La Liga in the coming days.
Carlo Ancelotti’s side have not managed to beat Atletico in five games so far this season since they were proclaimed European Champions against them in May last year in 4-1 extra time win, and even in that game the scores were level after 90 minutes. Also factor in that Sevilla have won six out of seven matches in La Liga so there is hope for Barcelona fans that Madrid will drop points before the end of the week.
Luis Enrique is able to rest his players for the first midweek so far of a hectic 2015, after an incredible January saw a disastrous defeat at Real Sociedad with the year only in its fourth day quickly turn into that eight match winning run.
Bizarrely, the negative energy and vitriol generated from the press toward Luis Enrique from that 1-0 loss against Real Sociedad in the San Sebastian may have worked in Barca’s favour. It’s provided the squad with the determination to turn things around so quickly.
Those early days of crisis when Enrique’s role was being questioned almost appears slightly manufactured now looking back. And if he did know full well that he had the full support of his squad, he played the media beautifully to make them believe that there was a rupture did exist between himself and his squad and more importantly Lionel Messi.
Lionel Messi’s game-winner against Villarreal helped secured a come-from-behind win for Barcelona and continues his impressive form in January.
Messi has shown a steely determination to succeed in every game he has played so far in 2015, with the exception of a disappointing second half when he was finally able to take the pitch at Sociedad.
Now with those days of attrition and doubt behind them, Barca have three important home games in February after this week’s tie against Sevilla. First, they host Villarreal in the first leg of the Copa del Rey semifinals. Then, they host Levante and Malaga in the league. Then, the Catalan club is back to traveling as it heads to the Etihad Stadium to face Manchester City in the first leg of the Champions League at the end of the month.
If Barcelona can come through those fixtures unbeaten without dropping too much in the three league games, then the club will surely be in a fantastic position when it goes to struggling, 18th-placed Granada at the end of the month. With Enrique now only making slight changes to his starting lineups, as opposed to the months of experimentation before the turn of the year, he has a concentrated group of top class professionals have switched on at exactly the right time.
Despite criticism of the squad rotation, Enrique also achieved a run of eight successive wins before Christmas. To put it into perspective, Pep Guardiola only managed 11 wins in a row in his time as coach, and that too came in his first season.
Injuries, loss of form, refereeing decisions and downright bad luck are all things that coaches can’t control when the season arrives at the business end, but Enrique must be congratulated for guiding this Barca side into a wonderful position to achieve success. Now, if only Real Madrid could drop a few more points!