Apart from the league, Barcelona still have challenges

FC Barcelona can declare itself champion of the League four years later on the next day, the 34th, which will take place on the weekend of May 13 and 14. This is, passively, if Atlético and Real Madrid are not win the respective matches in Elche and against Getafe or it is, passively, if the Barça team wins the derby against Espanyol in Cornellà-El Prat, regardless of the score of their immediate pursuer. Xavi Hernández, a culé coach, is one step away from being crowned with his first major title. Against the self-interested thesis of becoming “cheap”, Xavi already appreciates the merits of his team. But he can still give more luster to this seemingly imminent victory by achieving other victories in the remaining days.

NOW, +13 IN THE SECOND

+15, THE LONGEST DISTANCE

Xavi did not want to be obsessed at that time with the possibility of wanting to repeat the 100-point League that, with the remembered Tito Vilanova as coach, Barça signed in the 2012-13 season. His only priority is to clinch the league title for the club four years after the last, a goal he could reach the next day. It is clear that with that victory in his pocket, his desire is to finish the championship. You can do this by giving the farthest points distance with respect to the second classified. So far, with 82 points, he takes 13 from Atlético and 14 from Real Madrid. The biggest advantage in a League was certainly achieved by Tito Vilanova’s Barça in the 2012-13 League, with +15 compared to the runner-up, Real Madrid. Ernesto Valverde’s Barça won the 2017-18 League with +14 vs. Atlético and +17 vs. Real Madrid.

2

TER STEGEN, ZAMORA FOREVER

There are 11 goals, seven mattresses

Marc André Ter Stegen is one step away from winning his first Zamora Trophy since his arrival at FC Barcelona in 2014. Being the goalkeeper with the fewest goals scored in the Liga is on his way to having more icing on the cake : being the best Zamora in the whole history. With only 11 goals conceded in 34 games and an average of 0.33, his numbers are exceptional. Until now, the best Zamora for their numbers in a Liga are Jan Oblak and Paco Liaño. The goalkeeper of Atlético, in the season 2015-16, and the goalkeeper of Deportivo, in 1993-94, scored 18 goals in 38 games, with an average of 0.47 goals per game. In addition, with 25 clean sheets, he has equaled the best streak by a goalkeeper in a European League, that of Petr Cech at Chelsea 2004-05. Therefore, that mark can be beaten with five games still to come.

3

LEWANDOWSKI AND THE FIRST PICHICHI

Of the 19 goals, he took two from Benzema

Robert Lewandowski closes his first season at Barça leading the league’s top scorer table. Although he lost his auctioning bellows compared to the first round, the Polish Golden Boot is looking to add to his seven trophies for the best scorer in the Bundesliga and one in the Polish League already in the Spanish League. With 19 goals, none of them from penalties, he is two more than Karim Benzema, who has scored six of his 17 goals from the penalty spot. During his career, Benzema won a top scorer trophy in Ligue 1 and a Pichichi, the one from last season.

4

GIVE QUARRY A CHANCE

See Pablo Torre, Lamine Yamal and company

If alirón wins the next day, Barça will have the challenge of maintaining its competitive tone with the perfect opportunity to give some of its young players with the most projection minutes in the elite. For example, Pablo Torre, aged 20, played a total of 253 minutes in 10 games in his first season at Barça, contributing one goal and one assist. Or Lamine Yamal, who made history against Betis by becoming the youngest Barça player to make his Liga debut, at just 15 years and 290 days.