Luis Enrique singled out Arda Turan for praise following his side’s utterly dominating 4-0 victory over Borussia Monchengladbach
Barcelona never looked uncomfortable as they easily dispatched the German side, with Lionel Messi opening the scoring and Arda Turan bagging a hat-trick and an assist during the game. Enrique made several changes to the side that drew with Real Madrid, but this had no effect on the game as Barcelona dominated from start to finish.
The match wasn’t significant in that the table in their group had already been decided, but Enrique was impressed with Turan’s performance nonetheless. Speaking after the game, the Barcelona manager had this to say about the Turkish midfielder’s performance, but also about the team performance :
“This season he’s been setting up a lot of goals. He’s very useful when he plays on the left. I also like him when he plays inside. I’m happy for him.” he said, according to Sky Sports.
“I’m very happy with the speed we circulated the ball. It was a game with more to lose than gain, but the team have done very well throughout, even though our opponents were very withdrawn.”
Barcelona had a complete monopoly on possession, ending the game with a whopping 72.4%. Enrique should definitely be pleased with the way the passed the ball, as their collective pass success rate was also a hugely impressive 91%, something that is of even more significance when you consider the fact that they scored 4 goals in the game.
Enrique was also wary of the upcoming draw for the knockout stages before deciding his side’s chances of winning the Champions League this year, saying :
“We need to wait for the draw to see which ball comes out. We’ve done our homework and yes, there are surprises with teams who have finished second when you expected them to finish first. [But] we’re used to these explosive draws. We’re expecting a little gem.”
“Of all the teams who will finish second in their group, I’m sure that we’ll get the best or those with the most points.”
Enrique is no doubt wary of three clubs in particular – Bayern Munich, Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain – all of whom finished second in their respective groups. Any of those teams would represent a tough draw for Barcelona, and with the Catalan club on a poor run of form until last night’s performance, Enrique will be hoping to avoid those clubs until his side can put a real run of form together.
