Nobody in their right mind would dare to criticize FC Barcelona's forward line. Raphinha has gone from being transferable to a franchise player in just six months. Robert Lewandowski is once again reminiscent of that forward who scored goals effortlessly at Bayern Munich. Meanwhile, Lamine Yamal continues to show that he will define an era in the blaugrana team. Moreover, the numbers don't lie and are truly astonishing. 65 goals in 24 league matches. A total of 7 goals between the semifinal and the final of the Super Cup. Another 14 in just three Copa del Rey matches. And no less than 28 goals in 8 Champions League games. As mentioned, it's madness.
It's evident, Flick's Barça is a machine when it comes to offensive play. The voracity of its footballers allows for an intensity that overwhelms their opponents from the first minute, creating dangerous opportunities from the initial whistle. But accuracy doesn't always join them. In fact, in this team of so many ups and downs, the sharpness in finishing goal actions is also somewhat drastic; it either appears in full force or doesn't show up at all. Proof of this is the recent results of the culé team in the league. A one-one draw in Getafe, a thrashing of Valencia, a narrow victory against Alavés, another thrashing of Sevilla, and a tight and hard-fought win against Rayo.
It should be noted that, unlike what happened in November and December, when FC Barcelona only managed to earn 6 out of 24 possible points in the domestic championship, now Flick's team knows how to pull through matches even when they're not at their best. It could be said that they have learned to win without showing their best version, something that didn't happen when setbacks occurred every weekend. And although the schedule is getting tougher, and numerous high-stakes matches are coming up for the rest of the season, the fact that this Barça is maturing in areas where they were previously inexperienced is great news.
Not much more can be demanded of a team that in August was a sea of doubts and now, a few months later, has won the Super Cup, is leading the league, is in the Copa semifinals, and is watching the Champions League play-offs from the comfort of home. But if we are to ask, because asking is free and it's quite an addiction that most humans are hooked on, one could plead for a better distribution of the goals scored. The 114 goals scored by Barça in 37 official matches give an average of more than three goals per match, a figure that if confirmed in each game, instead of being distributed between thrashings and much tighter results, would undoubtedly translate into significant titles at the end of the season. While waiting for that to happen, for now, maximum and minimum accuracy for Flick's team in recent matches.