Just Barcelona News

It does not take a rocket scientist to work out that Lionel Messi is a key player for Barcelona. With 57 goals this season, it is not surprising that officials from Bayern Munich have been studying every aspect of Messi’s game and the way he makes space and links with his team mates.

Barcelona’s Champions League opponents tonight have also highlighted the influence of Xavi Hernandez from midfield. The German’s are a very good side themselves, both in attack and defence, but they know that Barcelona dominate possession against any team they play. It is this aspect of the game that Bayern will try to disrupt by putting pressure on Xavi.   .....Read more here.......

After Barcelona moved inexorably towards a 22nd Spanish title with a narrow victory over Levante on Saturday, all eyes turn to Germany. The Barcelona players are already in Munich for their game against Bayern tomorrow and it appears that the best player on the planet, Lionel Messi, is fit and ready to lead the Barca attack.

The Argentinean striker picked up a hamstring problem in the first leg of the quarter-finals against Paris Saint-Germain and the club have had him wrapped in cotton wool ever since. He only came on as a substitute in the second leg after PSG scored and Barca were faced with an early exit. Even though he was not fully fit and didn’t score himself, his presence made the team much more dangerous.   .....Read more here.......

Barcelona play the first leg of the Champions League tie against Paris Saint-Germain at the Parc des Princes tonight, and they are determined to avoid the pressure that they put themselves under in the last round. The turnaround against AC Milan at the Nou camp was magnificent, but was always in danger because of Barca failing to score an away goal.

Towards the end against Milan, the Italian side had a few scoring chances which would have been a disaster, and it was not until Jordi Alba scored at the end that the result was secured. We must avoid that happening again, and the best way to do that is to score a goal tonight.   .....Read more here.......

It seemed like the football world was waiting to pronounce the last rites on Barcelona. There was talk of the end of an era, and suggestions that opposition teams had worked out how to play against Barcelona and nullify the system. Well that didn’t work last night, as Barcelona ruthlessly battered AC Milan into submission using the same tried and tested system as usual.

The difference last night was that Barcelona played well, whereas against Real Madrid and Milan recently, they had not. So, basically, the way to beat Barcelona is for them to play badly, or to be really lucky like Chelsea last season. People say Barca have no plan B, but the system and the players they use mean that there is lots of flexibility in the team that is on the pitch.   .....Read more here.......

The brain of Barcelona is back, and hopefully reinvigorated after his break. Barca will need Xavi Hernandez to be back to his best at the Nou Camp tonight if they are to get to the next round of the Champions League. The midfield maestro has been passed fit by medical experts after recovering from his hamstring problem. Many believe that Barca’s recent problems can be traced back to Xavi’s absence and the fact that he was not at 100 percent before.   .....Read more here.......

Barcelona have been called the best in the world, and some have said that the current team are the best in history. For nearly two years now Barca have also been at the top of the world rankings for football clubs, even when they lost the Primera Liga title of Spain to Real Madrid last season. That run has now come to an end.

Three defeats in the last four games, two to Madrid and one to AC Milan, has seen the team slip to fifth in the rankings compiled by the International Federation of Football History and Statistics. Chelsea’s cup double of last season has helped them jump to the top of the list, with Bayern Munich, Athletico Madrid and Corinthians also ahead of Barcelona.   .....Read more here.......

Barcelona are already 16 points ahead of their great rivals Real Madrid in the Spanish Primera Liga. Even with 12 games left after tomorrow’s Clasico, there is very little chance of Barcelona losing the Spanish title this season. Jordi Roura and his players will be desperate for a good result at the Bernabeu, though, to banish the painful memories of the recent defeats by Madrid and AC Milan.   .....Read more here.......

The Barcelona and Brazil right back Dani Alves has recent experience of playing against the England international midfielder Jack Wilshere. The 21-year old was named Man of the Match as England won the friendly game at Wembley Stadium earlier this month, and Alves was so impressed that he feels that Wilshere could be as good as the current starts of Barca.

Wilshere was also the main man for Arsenal when the London club managed to beat Barcelona in a Champions league match back in the 2010-2011 season. The young star missed the whole of last season with recurring injury problems, but he seems to be back to his former self and has just signed a long term deal with Arsenal.   .....Read more here.......