10 interesting facts about FC Barcelona

Bhargav
Lionel Messi is arguably the greatest football player of all time
Lionel Messi is arguably the greatest football player of all time

#8 Barcelona have never been relegated from the La Liga

Barcelona
Barcelona

Along with Real Madrid and Athletic Bilbao, Barcelona are the only other club never to have been relegated from the La Liga during the competition's nine-decade long existence.

Not surprisingly, the 26-time La Liga winners have a slew of records in the competition. One of only two clubs to have breached the 100-point mark in a La Liga season, Barcelona, have the longest unbeaten run (43 games) and longest unbeaten away run in the history of the Spanish top flight.

Barcelona's inspirational captain Lionel Messi has the most goals (444) and the most assists (201) by any player in La Liga history. The diminutive Argentinian, who scored a staggering 50 league goals in 2011-12, made a Liga-high 21 assists last season in an otherwise dismal campaign for Barcelona.

#9 Barcelona are the only club in Champions League history to successfully overhaul a 4-goal first-leg deficit

Barcelona players are ecstatic after their epic comeback
Barcelona players are ecstatic after their epic comeback

Trailing Paris St. Germain 0-4 going into their second-leg Round of 16 clash against the French champions in the 2016-17 Champions League, Barcelona had it all to do.

Never in the history of the competition had any club successfully overturned a four-goal deficit. Barcelona, undaunted by the overwhelming odds, began on a bright note as they halved the arrears by half-time.

Barcelona managed to make it 3-0 on the night, courtesy Lionel Messi's penalty. However, when Edinson Cavani scored what looked like a precious away goal for the visitors, Barcelona needed to score three unanswered goals in little less than half an hour to avoid an early exit.

With a capacity Camp Nou egging their team on, Barcelona scored their fourth of the night in the 88th minute but still needed two more goals to advance. Pouring forward in numbers, the Blaugrana scored twice in injury time to complete the most stunning of comebacks in the Champions League.

Camp Nou erupted in jubilation as PSG looked shellshocked at what hit them. Barcelona had just become the first team in the Champions League to overhaul a four-goal first-leg deficit.

#10 Barcelona are the only club to win six trophies in a calendar year

Barcelona won a staggering six titles in 2009
Barcelona won a staggering six titles in 2009

In a year when Barcelona became the first Spanish team in history to win the continental treble, the Blaugrana started the 2009-10 season by winning the UEFA Super Cup and the Supercopa de Espana to make it five wins in as many competitions in the year.

The year was to get better still for Pep Guardiola's men, though. Barcelona entered the Club World Cup as the overwhelming favourites to win the competition but trailed Argentine club Estudiantes with one minute of regulation time remaining in the final.

In entered supersub Pedro into the party as Barcelona drew parity to force extra time. Lionel Messi then capped off the greatest year by a team in club football when he slotted in from close range to win Barcelona a record sixth title of the year.

A decade later, no team has come close to emulating this feat of Barcelona who remain the only club to win the calendar-year sextuple.

Quick Links

App download animated image Get the free App now