In Argentinian superstar Lionel Messi, Catalan giants Barcelona have one of the best players to ever grace a football pitch. No doubt the veteran star has and will win his team games with moments of individual brilliance.
However, Messi suddenly finds himself rather short on attacking support. Barcelona looked well covered in attack with the likes of Luis Suarez, Antoine Griezmann, Ousmane Dembele and wonderkid Ansu Fati all in the squad.
The reigning La Liga champions are now down to just Messi, Griezmann and Ansu as attacking options, with both Suarez and Dembele looking set to miss the remainder of the campaign. For most clubs having that trio would sound like a dream.
However, Ansu is still a diamond that needs polishing, while Griezmann has not quite lived up to expectations in Catalonia since his summer switch from Atletico. Messi is one of the most consistent players in the world game. If he has a rear off-day his team tend to struggle to score goals, though.
The weekend 3-2 win at Real Betis illustrated Messi’s importance. He did not get on the scoresheet, but he created all three of Barcelona’s goals. The dependence on Messi producing is worrying for the Spanish champions.
One surprising aspect of the situation is that Barcelona allowed youngster Carlos Perez to leave for Roma in the January window.
It was a strange decision, as the Masia graduate had shown promise in his appearances earlier in the campaign. He would have at least offered Barcelona head coach Quique Setien another option. A plan B of sorts.
Barcelona are likely to be good enough in attack to see-off the threat of most of their La Liga opponents. However, when the Champions League begins again it may be a different story.
Messi is outstanding, but he is only human and maybe the decision not to sign another attacking player in the January transfer window will come back to haunt the Catalan giants.