Luis Enrique’s Barcelona about far more than fearsome front three

The bad news for Saturday night’s Champions League final opponents Juventus, however, is that Barca are far more than just a three-man team.

In recent months, in fact, they have emerged from unpromising beginnings to gel into a fully functioning team in the truest sense of the word.

.@FCBarcelona Messi, Suarez and Neymar could well prove to be the most prolific, thrilling, unstoppable front 3 of all time.

— Gary Lineker (@GaryLineker) June 5, 2015

That wasn’t always the case. Earlier in the season, and throughout much of the previous campaign, Barca could sometimes resemble a rag-tag bunch of schoolboys as they wandered around aimlessly in the hope that their best player (Messi) would conjure up something spectacular.

Since January, however, greater consistency in team selection, a collective understanding that the days of relying upon Xavi to run the midfield are over, a new position for Messi, and a shared concept of how every part of the team should function have all conspired to make Barca a fearsome unit all over the pitch.

With Messi and Neymar serving as the chief creative forces, a crucial starting point has been the role of the full-backs, Jordi Alba and Dani Alves.

Importantly, that duo is perfectly capable of answering the team’s unique attacking needs by consistently bombing forward in support of their superstar wingers – giving them a good passing option and also creating space by attracting the attention of defenders.

But full-backs also have to defend, and the seemingly endless energy reserves held by Alba and Alves mean there are few players better suited to the specific demands of their position in the current Barca team.

Alba and Alves are given additional confidence to attack by the consistent excellence of the two men alongside them in Barca’s ‘back four’ (although they hardly ever line up in a straight line of four): Javier Mascherano and Gerard Pique.

The latter has recovered from a lethargic spell to reassert himself as one of the finest central defenders in the world. After losing his former partner Carles Puyol, at first Pique looked a little lost. Perhaps he was too comfortable, knowing that his team’s lack of central defensive options more or less guaranteed him a place in the starting XI.

Last summer’s arrival of Jeremy Mathieu and Pique’s subsequent omission from the team, however, appear to have given him the required kick up the backside and he has looked a different player since being reinstated: focused, serious and determined.

Alongside him, Mascherano is the team’s spiritual leader and the man who really should be wearing the captain’s armband after Xavi has departed.

Although he is liable to committing errors, the Argentine’s rugged, wholehearted and never-say-die approach gives Barca the tough streak that every successful team needs, and his emotional impact upon his teammates should not be underestimated.

Further upfield, a new element of physical dynamism has been provided by the outstanding Ivan Rakitic – perhaps the best example of a complete midfielder to be found anywhere in the world.

Rakitic can run, head, pass, shoot and tackle, and also possesses a great tactical brain to ensure he is in the right place at the right time, contributing fully in both defence and attack – as illustrated by his driving run from midfield to spark the move which resulted in Neymar’s goal against Athletic Bilbao in Saturday’s Copa del Rey final.

Of course, Barca’s front three give them a chance of winning any game and when they are hot, they are close to unstoppable. But with Pique, Mascherano, Sergio Busquets and Rakitic providing a solid central spine, and Alba and Alves flying down the flanks, there are plenty of other ways for this Barcelona team to win.