If Barcelona or Juventus win the treble, which would be a more commendable feat?

Can Juve pick apart Barcelona?

Essentially this Juve side, apart from their heady mix of youth and experience, is one that just wears you down. That is relentless in achieving their goals. In so many respects, a lot like Luis Enrique’s Barcelona. Whilst there is every chance that Juve can win the midfield battle if the Catalans aren’t on their mettle in that department, Allegri’s side won’t have entertained a forward line anywhere near as potent as Messi, Neymar and Suarez.

To put their prowess into some sort of perspective, Juve as a side have scored 97 goals in all competitions. Barca’s front three alone have 115 goals. Perhaps more pertinent to the discussion is that Enrique has found the key to the lock in terms of how to beat teams that “park the bus”. The term is a little derisory if applied to the Italians, but clearly Giorgio Chiellini, Patrice Evra et al are going to need to be at their very best to stop the Catalans.

Barcelona’s trio of Luis Suarez, Neymar and Lionel Messi have scored more than 100 goals this season

Chiellini, in particular, may feel that he has Suarez’s number. He kept the Uruguayan quiet during the World Cup and Suarez’s eventual frustration at not affecting the outcome is what led to his ban for biting. Whether or not Barca come into the match also going for the treble, Enrique will insist his side play in his own image. Combative, competitive, wearing their heart on their sleeve and giving their all.

Enrique has turned around Barcelona’s season

That is one of the major differences of this Barca side to the one that Tata Martino left behind. This time last season, the Blaugrana looked tired and disinterested. Bored if you prefer. Enrique has restored that sense of pride in the shirt. The “Barcelonisme” that was missing from the last campaign. His biggest win aside from eventually getting his staff to buy into his blueprint, is the way he has integrated all three of the front players into a monstrous and successful record-breaking unit.

Don’t be fooled by the old maxim that “anyone can coach those types of players.” Balancing the egos of three of the world’s best players against each other and the squad as a whole has required man-management of the very highest order.

Ditto the situation with Gerard Pique. The clown of the side was left laughing on the other side of his face when Enrique showed his hand earlier in the season. His revival as a world-class exponent of the defensive art is another reason why the Catalans are on the verge of becoming the first club in European football history to win the treble twice.

For Enrique, it would represent a rubber-stamping of a style that was criticised whilst he was at AS Roma, and in the early days of his Barca tenure. Allegri would also have assuaged the doubters who felt that Conte was still the man to take Juve forward.

The Olympiastadion in Berlin will host the Champions League final between Juventus and Barcelona

Who will come out on top in Berlin?

In terms of the difficulties of achieving the Holy Grail, we have to give credit to both managers but particularly to Enrique. Never having managed at such a high level before, and certainly not to any successful degree, it was something of a gamble by Josep Maria Bartomeu to hand him the reins.

Against the backdrop of a relentless pursuit from Real Madrid in particular, Enrique has kept Barca focused his first reward came in the Vicente Calderon. That’s not to downplay the achievements of Allegri, but even he would admit that domestically Juventus have been head and shoulders above anyone in the league.

The outcome of the final is too hard to call at this stage. The unstoppable force against the immovable object? Quite possibly.

And football will be the winner.