Luis Suarez scored twice and Messi and Paulinho each added a goal as Barcelona overcame a 2-0 deficit to Real Sociedad early Sunday to maintain their unbeaten run in La Liga. On the day when Manchester City saw their quest for invincibility ended by Liverpool, it looked for a bit like Barcelona might follow suit.
You might’ve forgotten about Ousmane Dembele following his 20-game layoff due to a thigh muscle rupture, and that’s OK. Really, missing that many games accounts for roughly 20 percent of the kid's career so far.
Lionel Messi is currently leading La Liga in scoring, and a big reason for that is the dynamic between him and Barcelona left back Jordi Alba. Of Alba's eight assists so far this season, seven have been scored by Messi.
Not that Messi doesn't sometimes return the favor, having assisted Jordi Alba twice.
When these two get rolling, Barcelona simply cannot be stopped, as Celta Vigo found out Thursday in the Copa del Rey, a match that featured two Jordi Alba assists to Messi and one Messi assist to Jordi Alba.
Philippe Coutinho was in the stands, but the only two players Barcelona needed against Celta Vigo Thursday were Lionel Messi and Jordi Alba. Meet me once Barcelona go up 3-0.
Messi’s first of the day: A wicked left-footed volley (via @beINSPORTSUSA) pic.twitter.com/cbzse7Y8bV
According to the latest reports, Chinese Super League side Hebei China Fortune and FC Barcelona have finally agreed to terms on the transfer of 33-year-old Argentinian defender Javier Mascherano, bringing a close to seven-and-a-half illustrious seasons at the Camp Nou.
Algunas veces pienso en Michael Owen. Es una especie de experimento mental sobre la unión de Owen al Manchester United en el 2009 a los 29 años en un contrato de 2 años y jugando muy poco. Mientras que la mayoría esperaba que encontrara un nuevo club en 2011 después de empezar en solo seis partidos de la Liga Premier en dos temporadas, él firmó una extensión de un año y esta fue su explicación:
Philippe Coutinho is finally a Barcelona player after months of speculation, two dubious injuries during transfer windows and several rejected bids from Barcelona. No secret was made of the Brazilian international's desire to move from Liverpool to Barcelona, but few could have foreseen Coutinho's desire being so desirous that he reportedly paid out of his own pocket to help finance the deal, one of the most lucrative in history.