The Barça exhibition against Athletic in La Cartuja not only gave his Cup number 31. It also fueled the doublet dream in a locker room unleashed with ambition and with the conviction that, despite the defeat at Valdebebas against Madrid, he is still capable of take the title. The Cup is not enough for Barça.
It is more than a matter of spirit. And something more than a matter of sensations. Above all, it is about play and legs. Because the same Barça that put Madrid in their area in the last minutes of the Classic was the Barça that passed over Athletic in the second half. Those of Koeman they were going at another speed. I hammered, Mingueza Y Araújo they played more than enough in defense; Dest and Jordi Alba were two pylon hammers in the bands, Pedri Y De Jong is it so lush and veterans like Busquets or Messi they were at a very high level. The team has reached a very high physical level, the best proof that Koeman has recovered the culture of effort.
Unleashed in the locker room with the players, Laporta asked them to go for the double on Saturday night. Footballers who have suffered so much in the last two years, and who now see themselves in this dynamic of the game, are clear that they will go for the 24 points that are at stake. They await Barça matches against Getafe, Villarreal, Granada, Valencia, Atlético, Levante, Celta and Eibar. Those of Koeman are aware that only by winning the 24 points they will have title options. There's a hungry locker room and a coach who, at the time of the Dream Team, became a great pursuer and knew how to compete with optimism until the last day of those Leagues of 92, 93 and 94. And his players want to. “That is not over, this has just begun.” In the Piqué's phrase is Barça's leitmotif between now and the end of the season.