With Messi at his best, Barcelona had no rival in the title

BARCELONA, Spain – Without Cristiano Ronaldo being at least at the rendezvous, a spectacular Lionel Messi had no rival to prevent him from helping Barcelona to successfully defend his championship title. ;Spain.

Barcelona won the crown with three laps to go on Saturday, after Messi beat Levante 1-0 at Camp Nou.

But it happened a long time ago. Barcelona lost only two games in 35 rounds and opened a significant lead early in the season.

He missed the only tentative attempt to fight Atlético de Madrid to secure an eighth title in 11 seasons.

In total, Barcelona has 26 trophies in La Liga, just behind Real Madrid with 33.

Barcelona can now devote itself entirely to the achievement of a rare triplet of titles. He will face Liverpool in the Champions League semi-finals on Wednesday and face Valencia in the Copa del Rey final on May 25.

How did Barcelona do it with such apparent ease?

Here are some reasons:

MESSI

When Messi could not do better, that's what he did and allowed Barcelona to win its 10th title of world champion out of 15 contested.

Messi will be in the running to win a sixth Golden Ball record for his season, having scored 46 goals in all competitions to date and preparing new ones for his teammates.

The top scorer in La Liga was particularly deadly. Six of his 34 goals in the league came from direct free kicks. At one point, Messi scored a free-kick on three consecutive games in late March and early April.

At 31, he is still faster with the ball than most players do not have. His vision of the land is incomparable. His left boot is a real danger for the goalkeepers whenever he has some space near the surface.

And to top it off, Messi became the vocal leader of Barcelona after the release of Andres Iniesta last summer.

Messi, the young man with curly hair and pinched lips who had fled the camera and the microphone, had long since disappeared. From now on, it is Messi who speaks for his teammates in the field with the referees and, occasionally, the media after the match.

His majesty was illustrated during a match in Seville on March 17th.

When Messi scored his third goal with a nonchalant lob that floated on the goalkeeper and touched the bar before returning home, Real Betis supporters stood up, cheered and chanted "Messi! Messi! Messi! "In tribute to his unforgettable performance.

DEFENSE

Long defined by its excellent midfielders, the defenders of Barcelona have become the most complete unit.

Gerard Pique led the return with his best season to date. Pique, 32, has redoubled his dedication within the club after retiring from international football last summer. The result was a series of flawless performances.

Clement Lenglet surpbaded expectations as a Pique partner at the center of defense. After arriving from Seville, he was supposed to be Samuel Umtiti's replacement. But his ability to score fast tackles earned him a starter position after Umtiti's injury.

Jordi Alba was one of Messi's favorite players in his fast forwards on the left flank, while Sergi Roberto and Nelson Semedo gave coach Ernesto Valverde two fast and reliable options in the back.

DEPTH OF SQUAD

Luis Suarez was again a second perfect option for Messi, scoring 21 points.

Coach Ernesto Valverde masterfully mixed his other weapons to help his team do some damage, alternating Ousmane Dembele's speed to the wing, controlling Arthur's ball and the vigor and vigor of Arturo Vidal at every moment.

Ivan Rakitic has also excelled as a solid two-way player from Valverde. The Croatian provided balance in attack and helped Sergio Busquets to sweep the center of the field.

Barcelona's strength has never been more evident than on October 28, when Suarez scored a hat trick to fuel a 5-1 defeat of Madrid while Messi was out with a wounded arm.

NO CHALLENGERS

It was not difficult to predict that if Madrid had rarely prevented Barcelona from winning the title in recent years, the situation would be even more difficult once Ronaldo left for Juventus.

But Madrid was a disaster in the second month of the season. The sacked coaches Julen Lopetegui and Santiago Solari were sacked before Zinedine Zidane returned to a team with incredible pride.

Atletico Madrid was the only team worthy of being nominated for the title. But a Barcelona 2-0 win over Atletico thanks to goals from Messi and Suarez put an end to slim chances for Diego Simeone's side, seven days from the end.

___

More football AP: https://apnews.com/apf-Soccer and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, disseminated, rewritten or redistributed.