Barcelona gets La Liga warning

The wake-up call dished out to Barcelona by Athletic Bilbao in the Spanish Super Cup was better to receive sooner rather than later.
There is nothing pleasant in losing a trophy — less still in losing one so comprehensively — but there may be one positive for the Catalans to take from the events of the past week. Complacency is the ultimate enemy for a successful team — avoiding it may seem simple in principle, but it is far more difficult in practice.
It was that very beast that drove Pep Guardiola’s obsessive quest to evolve over four seasons at the Camp Nou, and the failure to better it at least partially led to his departure.
The same fight against relaxation is one that Barca’s current coach has felt the need to highlight in the aftermath of the Super Cup loss, and with good reason.
Speaking after the 1-1 draw with Athletic on Monday, Luis Enrique said: “Sometimes good to lose in order to appreciate how difficult it is to win, how much it means to lift a trophy.”
As a guarded public speaker who is careful when selecting the nuggets of information he reveals to the media, it felt like a targeted message. The Asturian is a born winner and would never take comfort in losing, but the Athletic tie nonetheless provides useful ammunition to motivate his squad for the season ahead.
Watch Aritz Aduriz’s goal from the Camp Nou back. None of the Barcelona players around Claudio Bravo’s area come out looking like superstars, but while Javier Mascherano had the excuse of heavy legs after working tirelessly both in attack and defence — and Sergio Busquets at least tried to hinder the Basque striker — Jeremy Mathieu’s attitude was nothing short of criminal.
The Frenchman lost a header, saw the second ball breaking to Aduriz, and after shaping to chase after him, he decided to save his energy and watch the forward score. The definition of complacency.
Luis Enrique won’t have missed that detail, or others of its kind. Mathieu wasn’t the only player that looked less than sharp over the course of the two games. His model of coaching places a great deal of emphasis on collective effort. If a superstar forward like Luis Suarez is expected to work hard despite a challenging schedule, then evidently defenders must also fall in line. Any deviation from that mentality puts the foundations of the team’s success at risk.
Players may be protected in public, but the assessment in the dressing room and the consequences on the training pitch will be far harsher. A similar attitude in the major domestic competitions this season would put Barcelona in a perilous position, with the state of play going into the 2015-16 Spanish campaign suggesting it won’t be forgiving on teams who fail to exert themselves fully.
Real Madrid may not necessarily be prettier under Rafa Benitez, but they will be better organised and a good deal hungrier. Atletico Madrid, who have spent more in the summer market than the big two, should be a much more diverse and threatening outfit than last year.

Read also: Barca are champions (see pics)

With Jackson Martinez and Luciano Vietto added to the already formidable Antoine Griezmann, the Colchoneros have brought back the combination of pace, finishing and aggression up front that won them La Liga in 2014. In Angel Correa and Oliver Torres they have the creativity to unlock the stubborn smaller sides that cost them a realistic shot at defending their league title. Simeone’s men won’t allow Barcelona an easy ride.
Nor will Valencia, who will continue to be the physically imposing machine Nuno started to build last season and may yet bring in additional quality should they seal Champions League football in the coming fortnight. While Sevilla, despite losing good players, have also added ready-made quality, Yevhen Konoplyanka proving already that he could be a hugely effective weapon against the top sides judging by his showing against Barca last week.
Those are only the top teams, and as Athletic have shown, the midtable clubs shouldn’t be taken lightly either. Ernesto Valverde managed to figure out a formula to compete with Barcelona not only in defence, but also in the attack, suggesting that the San Mames will be an even more challenging opening league fixture for the defending champions than it previously seemed.
Special attention should also go to Barcelona’s opponents in Round 5 of the league. Eduardo Berizzo of Celta Vigo masterminded a win of his own over Barca last season and with Iago Aspas and John Guidetti now at his disposal, he has a few more tricks up his sleeve in the search for a further upset.
As defending champions, Barcelona already have a target on their back, and with opponents strengthening while they are unable to do so until the winter, the La Liga holders need to be sharp from day one. An unashamed devotion to attacking football means that when the Blaugrana play at anything less than 100 percent they are vulnerable.
Luis Enrique now has cold, hard evidence of that and will expect his players to take heed.

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