Barcelona see La Liga rivals slip up and drop crucial points | OneFootball

This season is one that FC Barcelona cannot afford to let slip away at any point. After a rather long wait, La Blaugrana are finally in a position to compete for every single title possible. While it will certainly not be easy, Barcelona know that they have the quality to make it work out.

Still active in three major competitions, the Catalan giants are competing in La Liga, the Copa del Rey, and the UEFA Champions League. In both the Copa del Rey and UCL, Hansi Flick’s side has advanced well into the competitions and are eager to challenge for both titles.

Over in La Liga, however, Barcelona is currently still in first place as they continue to be challenged by both Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid for the top spot. However, following the postponement of their recent game against CA Osasuna due to the passing of a certain first team doctor, the other two sides had a chance to momentarily close the gap.

While Real Madrid managed to scrape past a win against Rayo Vallecano in a 2-1 victory, Atletico Madrid have uncharacteristically slipped up. As highlighted by MARCA, Diego Simeone’s side lost to Getafe in their most recent La Liga encounter with a 2-1 score-line.

Despite leading 1-0 near the end of the game, Atletico Madrid were stunned by the opposition as they mounted a late comeback and scored twice to win the entire game. With this result, Atletico Madrid is now in third place in La Liga with 56 points and 27 games played.

Barcelona, on the other hand, have played only 26 games and have a match in hand. Still, the Catalan giants are currently one point ahead of Diego Simeone’s side and could go four points clear if they win their next La Liga game. However, with that game set to be against Atletico Madrid themselves, there is a lot at stake but the Catalan giants could make room to go even beyond just a four point lead.

For now, the focus of Hansi Flick’s side will primarily be on the upcoming game against SL Benfica. With the opposition doing everything they can to have their players rested for this massive UEFA Champions League clash, Barcelona are aware of the threat that Benfica poses and are ready to take on a demanding fixture at the Montjuic Stadium.