fcb-14.jpg
Getty Images
Barcelona finally won La Liga on Thursday with a 2-0 win against Espanyol, the seven-point gap between them and Real Madrid officially too large to knock the new champions out of top spot.
The team have been the favorites to win the title for several months now and add coupled their La Liga prize with the Copa del Rey, marking their first double-winning season since 2017-18. Their dominance this campaign, which included a run to the UEFA Champions League semifinals, was not exactly easy to predict at the start of the season. Barcelona entered this campaign with an everlasting sense of uncertainty, both through a managerial change and their chronic financial issues. Things clicked quickly under Hansi Flick, though, who built a team that was hard to beat from start to finish.
Barcelona spent much of this season bulldozing through their opponents, a list that includes a Real Madrid side that lost all four editions of El Clasico and were outscored 16-7 along the way. They benefited from the steady rise of teenage phenom Lamine Yamal but Flick also got impressive end product from his attackers, including a resurgent Robert Lewandowski and breakout Raphinha. Flick's attack-minded philosophy not only overpowered their opposition but also made amends for Barcelona's weaknesses, chief among them a wobbly back line.
As celebrations begin in Barcelona, here's a look back at the reasons they won the title.
Barcelona's all-out attack
Even if they got a deal for Dani Olmo across the line at the start of the season, Barcelona's financial constraints meant a summer of transformative signings was never going to happen, no matter how necessary it felt after the previous season – and especially after Real Madrid landed Kylian Mbappe. Flick, though, made the most of what he had through an entertaining and effective style of play.
Barcelona fully embraced an attack-minded style that included a high line, a high-risk, high reward approach that paid off because of the strength of Flick's attack, led by the likes of Lewandowski, Raphinha and Yamal. They lead La Liga with 97 goals from 87.47 expected goals so far this season, thanks to a varied approach that has allowed multiple players to succeed. At this point in the season, Barcelona have five players with 10-plus goals, a list that includes Olmo and Ferran Torres. Not only did they score thanks to a wide range of players, but they also added goals from a range of sources. Flick's side lead La Liga with 14 goals from set plays, including eight from corners alone.
Flick also made some important tinkers to the players behind that trio along the way, though, adjustments that only improved Barcelona's margins of victory, even if clean sheets were somewhat hard to come by. Frenkie de Jong became a regular starter, replacing Marc Casado in the winter to provide more defensive stability, while Wojciech Szczesny replaced Inaki Pena after first-choice goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen picked up a knee injury last fall. Szczesny has been mistake prone but he still averages 0.9 expected goals against per game, while Pena's total is at 1.3.
Getting the best of Raphina, Robert Lewandowski
Flick's unexpected ability to turn Barcelona into a title-winning team is exemplified in two players specifically – Raphinha and Lewandowski, especially the former.
Raphinha, who joined the club in 2022 from Leeds United and had once been viewed as an example of Barcelona's decline, essentially became one of the world's best attacking players overnight. The Brazil international transitioned from his previous role as a more traditional winger to a more central position where he resembles a second striker. Flick's decision has paid dividends – Raphinha is wrapping up what has been a career-best season with 34 goals across all competitions, much better than the 17 he posted for Portugal's Vitoria in the 2017-18 campaign.
As for Lewandowski, he appeared to be showing signs of decline last season, but the 36-year-old has improved after reuniting with Flick, who was previously his manager at Bayern Munich. He is slightly less present on the ball but is much more of a shot-taking machine this season than last – he averages 3.4 shots a game in La Liga, up from 2.7 last campaign. He also has more goals to show for it, averaging 0.8 goals per game after posting 0.5 last time out. He is also currently La Liga's leader for expected goals with 24.65 and ranks third in the league for shots with 109.
Lamine Yamal leads youth movement
For Flick, the easiest part of working with Barcelona's existing players has likely been handing opportunities to another talented group of academy products. He had the fortune of inheriting a group that actually had a solid amount of experience under his predecessor, Xavi, who was perhaps forced to do so because of the club's finances but did his best to usher in the next generation.
That group is undoubtedly led by Yamal, who fully cemented his status as one of the game's next stars this season. The 17-year-old has been an attacking force with 17 goals and 20 assists across all competitions and leads the way in La Liga in the latter category. He also ranks second in the league for shots with 131, but Yamal is foundational to every Barcelona attack, even outside of goal contributions. He is a terrific passer of the ball, creating incredible offensive opportunities with highlight-reel worthy moves and has already developed an ability to handle the pressure of big moments. In Yamal, Barcelona already have a player who can anchor their team for the foreseeable future, quelling a lot of the uncertainty that has followed the club since Lionel Messi's departure revealed the severity of their financial situation.
Yamal, though, is not the only young talent who made his mark this season. A batch of academy products were regular starters during this campaign, from Pau Cubarsi and Alejandro Balde in defense to Gavi and Pedri in midfield. Like Yamal, they are becoming reliable fixtures in a new era for Barcelona and perhaps providing a sense of calm for a club that may still be restricted in the transfer market for years to come.