Barcelona have had a remarkable start to the 2024-25 season, winning 14 of their opening 16 matches across La Liga and the Champions League. Hansi Flick has done a spellbinding job since taking over from Xavi Hernandez in the summer, and it seems that the sky is the limit for the Catalan giants.
After 12 matchdays, Barcelona sit nine points clear at the top of La Liga, albeit they have played a game more that closest challengers Real Madrid. Nevertheless, it is a significant margin with almost one-third of the season played.
Not many people would have used a betpack on Barcelona reclaiming the La Liga title that they last won during the 2022-23 season, but as things stand, they are well on course to do that. Real Madrid have dropped points against the likes of Mallorca, Las Palmas and Atletico Madrid, whereas the only blemish for Flick’s side was a loss at Osasuna.
There are many pundits and supporters that are saying that Barcelona are currently the best side in Europe, and you would be hard-pressed to argue against that. They are among the top scorers across the entire continent, and their defensive performances have also been satisfactory, despite their well-documented high-line approach.
It begs the question of how can Barcelona keep up this form. They have yet to hit a bad patch, despite having had difficult fixtures against the likes of Bayern Munich and Real Madrid. Furthermore, they have recovered several key players from injury in the last few weeks, and more will be returning soon (Ronald Araujo and Andreas Christensen).
So, Barcelona have the squad depth to continue their form, unless they suffer another serious injury crisis. However, even if that were to happen, they proved during the early stages of the season that they are more than good enough to sweep aside teams with a reduced number of players.
It’s a relatively small sample size, but Barcelona have proven that they are capable of keeping things going. Right now, they look unstoppable, and the rest of Europe – and especially La Liga – should be very fearful. What’s more, they still have players that are yet to return to top form, such as Frenkie de Jong and Gavi.
It remains to be seen whether this can be a golden season for Barcelona. For the time being, their supporters could aim to just live in the moment, although there will be plenty that are dreaming of multiple titles come June.
By Alejandro Fernandez