5 reasons why Barcelona may not win La Liga this year?

Writing something like this is always risky. By the end of the season, if the said team goes on to win, then the writer is susceptible to getting slated and abused for her/his premature judgement. However, I will still take the risk and go on about it.

Barcelona are a wounded team. After the waning of some of their best players, they seem to be morally hurt by the departure of their supposed future, Neymar. With the league starting in about a week’s time, the Catalan club’s chances of winning it seem bleak.

And here are 5 reasons as to why Ernesto Valverde’s men don’t have what it takes to win the league come May next year…

#5 Weak midfield

Once upon a time, not too long ago, there was a team in the heart of Catalonia. That team was legendary, they won everything that was there to win. That team had the best forwards, the best midfielders and some of the best defenders.

That team was Barcelona. Obviously, the club still exists, but that team doesn’t. That Barcelona had an unparalleled midfield of Xavi, Andres Iniesta and Sergio Busquets. While the latter two are still at the club, they are far from the players that led that team.

Meanwhile, Xavi Hernandez departed from the club and left an unfillable hole. Ivan Rakitic came in and did well, but he is far from the influential figure that the Catalan was. Andre Gomes and Denis Suarez are the other players looked upon as a potential successor, but it has become apparent that they lack the sufficient quality to take over from those legendary midfielders.

Barcelona might yet sign midfielders to rejuvenate their team, but it will still be behind the imperial midfield of Real Madrid.

#4 Managerial change

FC Barcelona manager Ernesto Valverde

Yes, I know, the last time Barcelona changed managers, they ended up winning a treble. And I can never say never, but the chances of Barcelona repeating that feat is close to impossible. That Luis Enrique team had most of the players that formed the backbone of Pep Guardiola’s unbeatable Barcelona.

Ernesto Valverde, unfortunately, doesn’t. Iniesta has been on the decline for a longer period than one would like to admit, Busquets also seems to have lost his charm. The defence seems good with the signing of Nelson Semedo, but they still lack a quality backup centre-back as Javier Mascherano is on a downward spiral himself.

The one advantage Valverde has is that he won’t have to make drastic changes to the team as the philosophy will remain the same. However, it is going to take time for the new manager to find a system that best suits all the players – which is why they won’t win the league this season.

#3 Neymar blow

Barcelona fans won't see this anymore

When you lose the third best attacker in the world, it is a huge, huge blow. The Brazilian was supposed to be the heir apparent to Lionel Messi’s throne, but left in order to become the king somewhere else immediately.

And can you even blame him? Messi is 30 and not far away from a move to central midfield, which prolongs his peak by at least a couple of years. By the time he starts declining, which will be at least four years from now, Neymar will have been 29 and have had played his best years under the shadow of the great Argentine.

The move made sense from the former Santos player’s perspective, but Barcelona’s attack has dropped in quality – and it will be some time before they can get it back up to where it was when the Brazilian was dancing in from the left.

#2 Not much quality in depth

Andre Gomes is now Barca's best midfield hope

One of the most important things in football now is rotation. A team that doesn’t rotate, doesn’t win. Zinedine Zidane showed to full extent what the power of rotation is as he used it to his advantage last season.

In an era where 60 games in a season has become an obligation, it is absolutely necessary to keep the fitness of the player in check. This is why having a strong depth is absolutely essential for a team if they aspire to win trophies.

Rotating just for the sake of keeping the players fit isn’t something a manager can afford to do – they could actually lose games due to the lack of quality on the pitch. Barcelona have some world class players in their team, but when you look at their bench, it doesn’t ooze even half the excellence.

The backup midfield players right now are Andre Gomes and Denis Suarez while Gerard Deulofeu and Paco Alcacer are the first-choice substitutes in attack – which actually gives a damning picture of the state the club are in.

#1 Shift in power

Real Madrid look set to dominate

Barcelona, under Pep Guardiola, dominated the world of football. They were absolutely magnificent; they raised hell for the opponents and weaved sweet nectar from paradise for their own fans. They were unstoppable – perhaps the most unstoppable club team in the history of the game.

But we all know the drill – that nothing lasts forever – and it was about time for Barca’s domination to end.

Only a very few clubs could boast such a prolonged period of supremacy like Barcelona did. They won a treble as latest as two years ago, but the time has come for the cycle to change phases.

With Real Madrid going from strength to strength, picking up the best young talents like ripe berries from a garden, it is going to be very hard for the Catalans to usurp Zidane’s men.

Barcelona might as well go on to win the Spanish Super Cup against Real Madrid in a few days’ time, but that won’t change the fact that the Blancos have a superior squad to their eternal rivals.