I was watching Barcelona vs Celta Vigo the other day when my roommate sat down next to me and eventually asked me the question, “who do you think is going to win the Champions League?”
After a couple seconds of thinking I said, “Barcelona.” Literally minutes later Barcelona scored this goal.
“That’s why I think they are going to win,” I said after Rakitic completed his anti-climactic jersey reversal celebration, but afterwards I wasn’t quite sure why I was so convinced because of his goal. I am now.
Rakitic’s goal was a beautiful one, but it looked thoroughly average when I first saw it. Oh, I knew that Suarez’ pass and Rakitic’s run were good, but it just all looked so easy, and compared to everything else that Barcelona had done up to that point, well, it fell kind of flat. Let that sink in, that goal by Rakitic fell flat.
It becomes believable when you see everything else that Barcelona pulled off on the night.
Messi started off the evening by drilling an absurd free kick from 28 yards out.
It was exceptional, but to the point I am trying to make, even this I greeted with an, “of course he put it in.” Don’t get me wrong, I was thoroughly impressed, but this is Lionel Messi, of course he put it in.
Messi had punched the clock, and in the second half Barcelona really got to work. Messi slotted in Suarez with a dinked ball over the top and Suarez roofed it next to the far post. It looked so easy you have to wonder if the thoughts racing through the two of their heads were as simple as “triangle and L1” followed by “press the goal button.”
It just kept going. By the time the score was 3-1, things were reaching comical proportions. Barcelona had put in their work earning the lead, now they were just having fun.
Messi took it upon himself to pull off a street basketball move with his feet, and won a penalty in the process.
But he didn’t take the penalty normally, he laid it off for a teammate to finish, and Suarez was only too happy to oblige.
Interestingly enough, Messi’s layoff was supposedly meant for Neymar. Suarez obviously didn’t get the memo. If Neymar was mad he certainly didn’t look it celebrating the goal, and didn’t sound like it after the match: “[that pass] was for me, we had practiced it in training!" he said with a smile. "Leo and myself had practiced but Luis was closer and he scored it…Our friendship is the most important thing. It doesn't matter who scores the goals just that we win the games."
I have a feeling that Neymar was a little more pissed than he let on, but when you play on Barcelona you have ample opportunity to put such things behind you. He was pulling off rainbow kicks just one minute prior to the penalty; if he had a grudge, I don’t think he held onto it very long.
True to their reputation, Messi and Suarez made sure that Neymar scored by the time the blowout ended; they care about each other's need to find the back of the net. It was Messi to Suarez, who laced a perfectly lofted ball to a streaking Neymar, who did what he does best and scored.
He looked visibly relieved afterwards, as if he had finally done what he was supposed to do, as if scoring a goal was the minimum expectation. And that right there is why Barcelona is going to win the Champions League.
The 6-1 result of Barcelona vs Celta Vigo was not surprising at all. It was breathtaking to watch. It made me feel like a kid again, who just wanted his roommate to appreciate how f***ing amazing what he was watching was, but it was par for the course. This is what Barcelona do, and no one, not Real Madrid nor Bayern Munich, can do it like them.
Photo: Streamable
They say that if you find what you love to do you will never work a day in your life. Barcelona seem to be living proof that this can be true of the best in the world.
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