5 of the best players for FC Barcelona this season

#1 Lionel Messi

Messi is the ultimate lifeline for Barcelona’s team and his outrageous talent has helped him carry the entire team on his own.

In a discussion in 2011, Peter Schmeichel had suggested that Lionel Messi cannot play well in a team that does not have Xavi or Andres Iniesta.

His opinion was that Messi needed the brilliance of Xavi and the vision and intelligent running of Iniesta to succeed in his position.

However, Messi seems to be defying that opinion this season. The other players have stepped up in their roles but he is the one who is still leading the team.

The team looks worryingly short of ideas and direction while going forward without him. It is his creative brilliance as well as the talent of producing something special out of nothing that has helped Barcelona get over difficult situations.

Leo has been the man in attack who has delivered constantly. Quite often this season, Ernesto Valverde has played him in the false 9 position, which has helped the manager get the best out of him.

This particular move has allowed Messi to drop into the midfield and have a greater impact centrally.

More than anything else, it has been the attitude and the temperament of the Argentine that has been decisive. Staying away from his club’s failure in the transfer window, he remained focused on his task and duties.

Barcelona is nowhere close to the golden days under Pep Guardiola but they have been successful in being the best team in the league as well as qualifying from their Champions’ League group.

The majority of the credit for this goes to their talismanic forward.