Luis Enrique’s resolve rewarded as Catalans triumph
MADRID: With part one of their treble secured, Barcelona can afford to soak in the applause from their Catalunyan faithful when they face Deportivo la Caruna in the season’s final La Liga match at the Nou Camp Sunday.
Barcelona were crowned La Liga champions for the fifth time in seven years after a clinical Lionel Messi strike secured a 1-0 victory away to Atletico Madrid that wrapped up the title with a game to spare.
Cristiano Ronaldo hit a record-extending 26th La Liga hat-trick for Real Madrid in their 4-1 victory away to Espanyol but Barca cannot be caught now with a four point lead.
Messi combined with Pedro Rodriguez and then slotted home from the centre of the penalty area with 65 minutes gone.
It had been a cagey game but the talent of the Argentine shone through again to break the deadlock and help Luis Enrique to his first piece of silverware at the helm of Barcelona.
Barca are also through to the Champions League final on June 6 to face Juventus and will play Athletic Bilbao in the King’s Cup showpiece on May 30.
Barcelona have had to overcome many changes to win their 23rd La Liga title, coach Luis Enrique said.
“I have only been here 10 months and there have been a lot of changes in staff and the squad of a club which doesn’t understand the idea of transition,” the coach told a news conference.
“There is no way that a trainer of a top club will not receive criticism during the year and I knew that, so I’m his plans and there was plenty of criticism as he continually chopped and changed while Real Madrid moved ahead in the standings.
However, he finally settled for a more a direct style and during the second half of the campaign they have steamrollered opposition on their way to the league title.
Barca secured an extraordinary 29 victories from their last 32 games since the turn of the year and unsurprisingly, Messi with 41 goals has been central to their success once again.
The transition from a shorter passing game was seen in the dwindling influence of the veteran Xavi and growing importance of Ivan Rakitic, whose style is suited to making driving runs and knocking long balls to Barca’s lethal attacking trident.
Luis Enrique now has plenty to celebrate but he will be keeping a lid on his emotions for a while longer.
“I prefer quiet and calm celebrations,” he said. “We will rest for a couple of days to allow the team to relax and then we will start thinking about the cup final”. – Reuters