Several Barcelona players were privately surprised that they were not included in the 2015 FIifa/FIFPro World Team of the Year alongside Lionel Messi, Neymar, Daniel Alves and Andres Iniesta.
Players such as Luis Suarez, Ivan Rakitic and Sergio Busquets have been integral to the side that won everything in 2015 and were right to wonder why they were omitted.
Busquets is often overlooked, yet there is not a better holding midfielder on the planet. The emergence of Busquets in 2008 meant that Pep Guardiola was comfortable letting Yaya Toure go to Manchester City. The dynamics between the Ivorian and Guardiola will be interesting when he is named, as expected, as Manchester City coach for 2016/17.
Guardiola had coached the quiet Catalan Busquets for Barcelona B, in the Spanish third division, and considered him ready for the first team after just one season. Guardiola had seen him brush off aggressive situations at small town teams when everyone wanted to bring down the Barca players.
Busquets is as key to his side as Claude Makelele was for Real Madrid in the early part of this century, yet he is a superior player to the Frenchman, possessing a creativity Makelele lacked. His first touch is peerless, he is strong and, at age 27, the Barcelona No 5 is at his peak.
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Barcelona and Real Madrid pack the line-up — Fifa World Team of the Year
When Barca came to name their four captains for this season, Busquets was chosen by his peers ahead of other mainstays such as Gerard Pique. His best friend is Xavi, who comes from neighbouring town Terrassa.
“He’s the best player in the world in his position,” Xavi says. “He understands football, he’s ultra competitive, he finds solutions all over the pitch. He never loses the ball, he always takes the best option with a pass. I have great admiration for him and I’m not just saying this because he’s a very close friend.”
Busquets’s responsibility has increased since the departure of Xavi at the end of 2014/15. His current teammates identify him as the most competitive player in training. Playing alongside Iniesta, Busquets is the conductor of the Barca orchestra. He does not go past a man like Iniesta, but he is Luis Enrique side’s linchpin, a creative force from deep looking to play through balls.
Off the field, the Spain international keeps a low profile. He holidays in Spain with his partner and Xavi and his wife. He does not dress outlandishly, like Barca's Brazilians, he still lives in Badia, just as his father, Carlos, a former Barcelona goalkeeper, did. Badia has a hard-bitten reputation, and the Busquets are a barrio family who never moved away from their roots, despite playing for Barcelona. Carlos, a goalkeeper under Johan Cruyff, was known for being streetwise. If one of his teammates had a problem or their car radio had been stolen, they went to Carlos to seek a solution.
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“There are no pretensions where I’m from,” Busquets told this reporter. “My upbringing was normal, though my dad didn’t have a normal job. He would take me into the changing rooms and I remember meeting players like Rivaldo, Figo and Sergi. Figo was my hero. Then he joined Madrid. Barca fans hated him for that.”
Busquets is an advert for what Catalans call “seny”, meaning common sense and spirit. It was drilled into him by his father.
“My dad taught me common sense,” he said. “Work hard, listen to your coaches, don’t have a big ego. It sounds elementary, but I’ve seen some really talented kids leave Barca because they wouldn’t listen or thought they had become a professional before they did. If you are not good in a group then you don’t have a place at Barca.”
As he closes in on his 400th Barca appearance in his eighth season with the first team, Enrique is not misguided when he says that Busquets is the best midfielder in the world. Those voting for the best players for a World XI may prefer players who do not win trophies, but the brilliant Busquets should have been included.
Griezman’s goals are carrying Atletico Madrid
When La Liga's marketers are pushing Spain's domestic league as the best in the world, they evidence it by the fact that the world's best players ply their trade in Spain. The six usually shown – Messi, Suarez and Neymar from Barcelona; Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema from Real Madrid – have been joined by a seventh.
Antoine Griezmann, 24, is Atletico Madrid's best player. The club are in the process of improving his contract and increasing his release fee to €100 million (Dh399.21m) to scare off any potential English suitors, something Atletico have made a priority, given they are not allowed to register players in the next two transfer windows.
Griezmann scored another two goals as league leaders Atletico beat Las Palmas 3-0 away on Sunday, both coming in the last 22 minutes of the game. Driven by their coach, Diego Simeone, and using an ace fitness trainer known as “The Professor”, Atletico finish games strongly.
Their defence is the best in Spain, with only eight goals conceded in 20 matches. The next best team, Barcelona, have conceded 15. Up front it is more complicated. Atletico have scored 30 to Barca’s 50 and Madrid’s 57. Big-money summer signing Jackson Martinez has just three goals so far, while Fernando Torres is replicating his dire Chelsea form. Griezmann is the exception. He does not play as a lead striker, but alongside Torres or Martinez, or just behind them. He is fast, tricky and he scores goals.
Though his teams have long had star players, Simeone pushes the idea of the team being more important than individuals. He wants his players to run through walls for him. He is also sparing with praise.
After the game in the Canary Islands, which was Atletico’s ninth win in 10 games, Simeone said: “Griezmann is showing very good consistency, since December [2014] until today. That speaks well of him. I would not put him up among the very best, I would just tell him not to listen to such talk, to look to himself, to keep improving. He is young, works hard. With time it will all come to him naturally.”
The Argentine has the confidence to play the French forward in every game. He has played in all 20 league matches this term, missing just 30 minutes of the entire season, and all six Uefa Champions League games, scoring 18 times in all competitions. Atletico’s next top scorer is a midfielder, Saul Niguez, with five.
Atletico may be reliant on Griezmann’s goals, but 14 of their players have scored this season. No other team has such a spread of scorers.
Griezmann’s talent was always clear after he came through the youth system at Real Sociedad after being rejected by hometown club Lyon. Eyebrows were raised when Atletico paid €30 million for him in 2014. That fee now looks a bargain.
Game of the week
Barcelona and Real Madrid face trips to Andalusia. The Catalans visit Malaga, who lost for the first time in six weeks last time out, at Sevilla. Madrid are at Real Betis, who drew 0-0 at Villarreal in their first game after sacking Pepe Mel as manager. Betis are struggling for form, but looked better organised as they picked up their best result of the season.
Player of the week
Luis Suarez was involved in five of Barcelona's six goals against Athletic Bilbao, scoring three of them. With 18 league goals so far, Suarez leads the Pichichi. His partnership with Messi and Neymar astounds, in part because all three of them get on well together. Former Barca sporting director Andoni Zubizarreta said: "We hoped he'd get on well with the other strikers. We couldn't imagine they'd share BBQs together at home."
Talking points
Eibar enjoyed their best win of the season on Monday night, beating Granada 5-1 at home. La Liga’s smallest club, who only stayed up by default after Elche’s financial irregularities, have 33 points from their opening 20 matches and sit sixth in the table, good enough for a Europa League position. They only had 32 points after 37 games last term. Favourites to go down, the team made up of free transfers and loaned players now have a goal difference only bettered by the big three.
Other news
Gary Neville is still waiting for his first league win as Valencia coach after a disappointing 2-2 draw at home to a Rayo Vallecano team who started the day in 19th place. Neville has enjoyed more success in the cup and his team face Las Palmas at home in the Copa del Rey quarter-final on Wednesday at the Mestalla.
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