In 2014, Barcelona was at a crossroads. The club that had scaled unprecedented heights under Pep Guardiola just a few years prior was now reeling from turbulence on and off the pitch.
Luckily for them, this is a club that always seems to find ways to claw themselves way back to the top regardless of circumstance– nowhere was this more evident than under Luis Enrique.
It’s a story of domination. It’s a story of a trio that arguably will never be topped. However, ironically, it’s a story of how a combination of elite talent can paper over the cracks of a broken system.
So how did it happen?
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25 Comments
10:11
Hate to be that guy, but… "Luis Enrique" is his given name. Enrique alone is like calling Messi "Andrés" (i.e., his "middle name"). It is either Luis Enrique (both jointly) or Martínez for him, if you guys insist on using his surname.
Sorry for raising this, but it feels really weird for us Spaniards when you refer to him as Enrique (which just means Henry in Spanish)
Lamine Yamal is the same, btw. Yamal alone is weird
Another banger
Onana catching strays😂😂
26:00 Small correction: Messi, Suarez and Pique were 29 at the end of 15/16
That’s a small hill to die on, hence Ronaldo ‘08.
Recency bias is a thing.
20:48 Correction: Messi 58 goals, Neymar 39 goals and Suarez was 24 goals
Luis Enrique's Barcelona was one of if not the most enjoyable team to watch, ever. The only one that really rivals it is Klopp's Liverpool IMO. i'm a Liverpool supporter so I might be biased but these 2 teams were just pure joy to watch. Now, Pep's Barça, Mourinho's Real Madrid, Luis Enrique's PSG, Pep' Bayern, Ancelotti's AC Milan are other great teams to have witnessed but the combinaisons of MSN in attack are something I'm glad I've witnessed, it was extraordinary.
Also, I 100% agree about Suarez. Many people talk about who was the n°3 behind CR7 and Messi. Some say Hazard, or Neymar, Robben, Griezmann, Ribéry, Lewandowski, Benzema, Salah… But I'd say it was Suarez. His absolute peak wasn't as long, but from 2012 to 2017 he was absolutely incredible. The man was the best finisher I've ever seen and indeed dragged Liverpool in a title race almost on his own and made everyone around him better. Had he been argentinian or spanish and had won a major tournament, he very well would have deserved a ballon d'or in 2014, 15 or 16.
His 2013-14 season is the best individual performance ever in the PL, I totally agree. Had we won the title, it would have been HIS title in a way that we've never seen elsewhere. No team has won the Premier League in great part thanks to 1 player. Yes, Gerrard had his last great season, yes Coutinho was a revelation, and so was Sterling, and Sturridge had his 1 world class season, but without Suarez the team wasn't even good enough for top 4 really.
I love how energetic and animated Enrique was which was rare for a Barcelona coach back then.
Never a dull day in Barcelona, but we thrive in it
No team in the history of football was better
Can we get an episode of Messi Xaviesta. People always talk about Xavi Iniesta and Busi, rightly so!
But I feel, the connection Messi had with Xaviesta was other worldly.
Never seen that, except Messi Alba, Messi Neymar, Messi Dani Alves, Messi Busquets, Messi Alba and Messi Suarez.
You see the pattern here! Maybe JUST MESSI is other worldly who makes a very good player otherworldly by just playing with them.
This quality of Messi can never be emulated
Jesus this guy is a poet with these titles
Like it makes sense and at the same time it doesn’t, love it!
Fc Negreira prime, shove all those rigged trophies where it belongs
10 years since a champions league😭2026 cmon 🔥
Thank you for taking a time to mention Suarez insane 2016; he should have won the ballon d’ or, plain and simple
Love this videos keep it up man❤
I'd love more of these types of videos — snapshots of teams and coaches
Not to be a "you got this wrong" nerd but Suarez's 5 game ban at the start of the 2013/2014 season for Liverpool was not for the racial abuse of Patrice Evra but actually for biting Ivanovic vs Chelsea
thank you needed this bro
Only long time subscribers will appreciate the “Why’s he done that”
Poor squad building was the downfall of the team in 2015/16. Not a single player on the bench was worthy of being in the starting 11. Hence, the team could not be rotated and was completely burnt out by March 2016. The fact that they let 10 man Madrid make a comeback against them in the second clasico that year is the biggest example of the fatigue.
You mentioned Simeone's Atletico team from the 13/14 season onwards… I think this'd be a great idea for a future video. How they won La Liga, then tried as they might (and they made a great effort), they could never sustain keeping up with Real and Barca in La Liga and in Europe. But for many years in the 2010s, they were won of the worst, most dogged and effective sides you could face in their prime
😂😂 0:07
The Barcelona team from 2008 to 2017 is the definition of untapped potential. Yes, they reached heights that no other club or group of players has, but the consistency of it left much to be desired.
Had they not been obsessed with winning the UCL at the Bernabéu in 2010, maybe they would be the team to have 3 consecutive champions leagues.
If the board and upper managements wasn't as terrible in 2016 and 17, maybe the MSN would have flourished further beyond than what they did with better signings supporting the team.
To say that it's a frustrating tale is an understatement.