LaLiga 2019/2020: 5 possible attacking combinations for Barcelona next season

#2 Messi and Suarez leading the line in a 4-4-2 system

Ernesto Valverde could also resort to a formation which is gradually going extinct despite enjoying immense popularity less than a decade ago.

This system would see Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez deployed as central strikers, with Griezmann operating as a left midfielder and Dembele complementing him on the other flank.

This would have the concordant effect of Barcelona having to play with an alien (to their style) system of just two midfielders, as one would have to drop out for the two wingers to be accommodated.

While this system would ensure Barcelona maintains defensive solidity (which Valverde prioritizes), its work-ability is highly debatable for many reasons.

For starters, Barcelona have operated with three in the middle for as long as anyone can remember, and trying to rework a system inbuilt in their DNA could be counterproductive.

Secondly, this formation requires pacy wingers who are adept at crossing the ball and while Dembele might be a speedster with pace to burn, the same cannot be said about Griezmann, and neither of them are particularly adept crossers.

Lastly but by no means least important, the very essence of this system is to have two central strikers who are physical in the box and dominant in the air and neither traits are exactly what you would describe Messi and Suarez with (although you could make a case of physicality for Suarez), making this formation virtually unworkable.