Barcelona had their point lead atop La Liga reduced over the weekend after a 1-1 draw against Valencia. It took a Lionel Messi penalty to save a point for the league leaders. While Barcelona dropped points, Atletico Madrid beat Real Betis 1-0. Despite having their lead reduced, Barcelona still has a nine point lead over Atletico Madrid in La Liga and a 16-point lead over rivals Real Madrid.
Part of the reason Barcelona are cruising in La Liga is because of Messi’s fine run of form. Messi has scored 34 goals while adding 8 more assists in 22 La Liga matches. With those goals and assists, Messi has contributed or scored more than half of Barcelona’s goals this season in La Liga. That is incredible with a team like Barcelona, where there are world-class players all over the field.
With a solid lead in La Liga, Barcelona may start looking to their Champions League match-up against AC Milan. Barcelona will want to reclaim the Champions League trophy after Chelsea won it last season. Barcelona has a favorable match-up against AC Milan in the Last 16. AC Milan currently sits in fourth in Serie A, 12 points behind league leaders Juventus.
The way the season has gone so far, it is hard to find a team that could beat Barcelona in either La Liga or the Champions League. Not only has Messi scored a large amount of goals in La Liga, he has also scored five goals and added two assists in the Champions League. Barcelona looks set to reclaim La Liga and the Champions League this season. Let us know who could possibly beat Barcelona in either La Liga or the Champions League.
Written By: Eric Stoyanov, Contributing Writer, soccerprose.com
