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Barcelona back to the top
Agung Rino Prasetyo
Wednesday, 15 July 2009

FC Barcelona was able to come back from the dead. They did not manage to win any trophies for two seasons. Frank Rijkaard was fired as manager after failing to give Barcelona trophies in 2006-07 and 2007-08 seasons. Josep Guardiola was appointed as the new Barcelona manager for the 2008-09 season. At his debut season, he was able to present Barcelona a ‘treble’, winning the La Liga, UEFA Champions League, and the Copa Del Rey.

Barcelona’s success was helped by the three forwards, Thierry Henry, Lionel Messi, and Samuel Eto’o. The trio scored more goals compared to any other forwards in the league. Lionel Messi finished as top scorer for Barcelona with 38 goals. He has also beaten rival Christiano Ronaldo in the Champions League Final with the score 2-0 for FC Barcelona.

Barcelona played an attacking possession style of football. Their average ball possession is 70%, which is very high for a team to be able to hold on for the ball in a match. Barcelona defeated arch rival, Real Madrid twice this season, with the first match taking place in the Nou Camp resulted 2-0 and the second match in the Bernabeu, thrashing Madrid 6-2. They are ranked the number one team in the world now after securing the treble and winning most of its game by a large margin. Lionel Messi and Xavi Hernandes is nominated for FIFA Player of The Year Award.
The team has achieved what no other Spanish league team can. The 2008-09 season has been very successful for Barcelona. It looks as though the team will continue with the current players and try to challenge the new season with the same fire power.

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