#barcelona-defence

#barcelona-defence

It's easy to see why. He's 6-foot-1 with a lean build, but strides forward with power and has a remarkable ability to quicken his step just enough to nip in and intercept a pass. He ranks in the 85th percentile in Ligue 1 for dribblers tackled, plus the 78th and 92nd percentiles for progressive passes and successful take-ons, respectively. This is a player who can halt opponents' attacks, then start his own in seconds.

The keeper, who was in sensational form before he picked up his injury, is believed to be on the verge of a return, and the fortnight where no club games are taking place gives the 24-year-old another opportune window to put in the work to make sure he's as good as new when Barca take on Athletic Club a week on Saturday.

Barcelona could only salvage a 3-3 draw against Club Brugge in the UEFA Champions League last night as their matchday 4 game went completely away from plan and was unexpectedly tight. The Belgian side gave Barcelona a tough fight and developed a plan that saw them exploit the Catalans' defence. They went ahead thrice on the night and deserved the win more than Barcelona. Hansi Flick's side, however, fought and found the equaliser all three times but never went ahead. In fact, they were lucky to take away even a point for a late error by Wojciech Szczesny actually handed Club Brugge the win until VAR intervened and handed Barcelona a boost.