This Barça has two faces. And their ability to win titles will depend on which of the two ends up prevailing throughout the season. At the Metropolitan we witnessed the best and the worst version of the Blaugrana team in the same match. In the first twenty-five minutes Barça appeared brilliant, with speed and intensity, far superior to the rival, with an extraordinary game. This exciting Barça dominated Atlético as they wanted and took the lead on the scoreboard with a spectacular action that Dembélé perfectly defined. But from the goal, curiously, Barça was transformed and went back to being the disconcerting team in the second half against Espanyol or Intercity.
The rojiblancos took a step forward, pressed and stole the ball from the blaugrana, in the face of the monumental anger of Xavi, who shouted his head off on the wing giving instructions to his players. The coach’s concern is that of all Barcelona fans in the face of this duality of the team, which hampers their chances of success. Despite the ups and downs, Barça asserted Dembélé’s goal and added three golden points, which place them as the sole leader of the League. A victory suffered until the last second and vital, which gives an important boost to the team but that still does not clear up all the doubts that hang over his performance.
Barça had an extraordinary opportunity to recover sensations and, at the same time, give the League a blow. Madrid’s defeat at Villarreal (the whites have only won two of their last five games in this competition) gave the blaugrana the option of taking +3 to the top of the standings. To achieve this, they had to beat Atlético at the Metropolitano. A task that seemed complex after the poor image offered by Xavi’s team in the last two games. The coach himself had shown his discomfort due to the lack of efficiency in attack and the poor defensive solvency.
The coach wanted to vindicate his project with a media triumph against Atlético. Not to sentence the championship (which will be very long) but to morally rearm the squad, the club, the fans and the environment. The task was extremely difficult, but the goal was achieved. Not without a lot of suffering and with a final scare included (Araujo saved the 1-1). The victory was achieved but it was clear that the team is still far from its best level. Although winning is always easier to find the path of improvement.