Dead men walking? Battered Barcelona's season could be over by the Clasico

Luis Enrique's side need to win at home to Real Sociedad to stay in the race for La Liga, before attempting a comeback against Juventus on Wednesday.


The magic of the comeback lasted for a month. The historic turnaround that was Barcelona's brilliant 6-1 win over Paris-Saint-Germain lifted the Catalan club and got the side's season back on track. But after back-to-back defeats, the Blaugrana have hit another crisis point.

The 3-0 loss to Juventus on Tuesday night left Luis Enrique's side needing another epic recovery and after the game in Turin, the Asturian admitted: "I am less optimistic this time."

On Friday he had changed his tune somewhat and said: "We are not going to give in." But, surprisingly and despite taking responsibility for the loss, he also added: "I did not get anything at all wrong tactically in Turin."

Many fans will disagree with that assessment and also with the coach's team selection in Italy. And as he hinted on Tuesday, the comeback will be more difficult this time because Juventus are one of Europe's best teams - and they also boast one of the game's meanest defences.