Luis Enrique insists there is more to Saturday’s Clasico between Barcelona and Real Madrid than the two attacking tridents on show.
The match has been billed as a heavyweight bout between two of the world’s most potent strikeforces, with Barca’s ‘MSN’ of Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar more prolific than any other trio and Madrid’s ‘BBC’ of Gareth Bale, Karim Benzema and Cristiano Ronaldo boasting the best average.
“[On Lionel Messi being one goal off 500], the figure is from another galaxy,” the Coach said at a Press conference.
“I’ve seen his face and he and the rest of his teammates are crazy for the victory.
“Yes [on his side being in ‘excellent’ form], but that won’t give us anything when we start the match.
“We hope we take the weight of the game by what we do with the ball. From there, we’re aware of the difficulty.
“It would be the decisive blow to Madrid as Atletico would be our only rivals left for the League, but still we have to win.
“More important than the performance of the [attacking] tridents is the performance of all the players.
“Forwards need good ball movement, assists and help when under pressure. You have to be compact, complete and competent.
“We’ve shown actively and passively that we’re dangerous on counterattacks.
“It doesn’t mean we can only win by playing this way, but we like to take the game to where we’re strongest.
“[On Javier Mascherano], he not only provides physical [quality] but character.
“He I s vital in the defensive line and has a lot of experience.”
