Barca on the verge of greatness

If they successfully conquer the major titles, Barcelona in the 2024/25 season could leave their mark as one of the greatest teams in football history.

Barcelona are playing captivating football.

An explosive Barcelona swept aside Borussia Dortmund in the early hours of April 10th, closing in on the UEFA Champions League semi-finals. Their three formidable attacking players all scored: Raphinha opened the scoring, Robert Lewandowski netted two goals, and Lamine Yamal sealed the 4-0 victory in the final minutes.

There will be much debate about the title of "greatest team in football history in a single season." The current Barcelona team clearly needs more trophies to be considered. However, in terms of performance and impact, Hansi Flick's team is no less impressive than any legendary team of the past.

Incredible performance

The second leg of the Champions League quarter-final in Dortmund is still ahead, but it's hard to imagine Barcelona failing to reach the semi-finals. This is a Barcelona team that plays as a team, with unity, and possesses an attack that consistently overwhelms opponents with devastating victories.

That's what coach Hansi Flick loves most about this team. They never slow down, even when leading. "The game doesn't end 2-0 or 3-0," Flick said in January, when Barcelona began their 23-match unbeaten run in all competitions. "They fight until the very last minute. That's what I love and that's the style we want to show."

That spirit will continue to be brought to Dortmund next week. "I think we played very well, but there's still one more game to play," Lewandowski told the press after the match. "We always want to play our own way and go there to win."

The Polish striker stated: "If you're leading 4-0 after the first leg, in the second leg in Dortmund you have to maintain your form, or even play better. This is the Champions League, and we always want to be at our best."

Lewandowski was a standout performer. His brace against Dortmund brought his total goals for the season to 40. Meanwhile, Raphinha also had a phenomenal Champions League season. He leads the tournament's top scorer list with 12 goals, followed by Lewandowski with 11.

Raphinha leads the 2024/25 Champions League assists list with 7 assists, officially equaling Messi's record of 19 goal contributions. With 14 goals and 5 assists in the 2011/12 season, the Argentine superstar held that record for many years in the Champions League.

Raphinha equals Messi's record in the Champions League.

However, with Barcelona virtually guaranteed a place in the semi-finals, Raphinha has a strong chance of surpassing Messi to hold the record for the most goal contributions in a single Champions League season.

Raphinha's statistics are just a small piece of the larger picture that is Barcelona. Coach Flick's team possesses one of the best attacking lines in Champions League history since the beginning of the 21st century.

Raphinha and Lewandowski are the first strike partnership to both score over 10 goals in a single Champions League season since Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino, and Sadio Mane achieved this feat at Liverpool in the 2017/18 season. The last Barcelona pair to reach this milestone were Messi and Neymar in the 2014/15 season, when "Blaugrana" won the tournament.

An opportunity to write history.

This is the 21st time this season that Flick's team has scored four or more goals in a single match. They have scored 36 goals in 11 Champions League matches in 2024/25, averaging more than three goals per game – seven more than any other team in the competition (including those who played two play-off matches).

Barcelona's demolition of Dortmund has sparked talk of a dream treble. The Catalan club will play the Copa del Rey final against Real Madrid on April 26th, and they are also leading La Liga by four points with eight rounds remaining.

"We can win the treble," Yamal declared. "We are Barcelona. We've done it before (in 2009 and 2015) - hopefully history will repeat itself." Clearly, titles are the only thing preventing the current Barcelona team from entering the hall of legend. They are on track to break a series of records for goals scored and wins by 3 or 4 goals.

Overall, the current Barcelona team plays captivating and extremely enjoyable football. The only thing preventing them from sharing the same pedigree as Pep Guardiola's Barcelona in 2009 and Luis Enrique's Barcelona in 2015 is the lack of trophies.

Source: https://znews.vn/barca-truc-nguong-cua-vi-dai-post1544674.html