Ferran, Rashford, and Fermín: the goal has no owner in this Barça

Lewandowski loses prominence

The more discreet role of Robert Lewandowski, combined with an injury that sidelined him for several weeks, has left Barça without that ‘killer’ who so often decided matches in the past. In this context, the goals are much more evenly distributed, and three players share the lead as top scorers of the team: Ferran Torres, Fermín López, and Marcus Rashford, all with 6 goals. The three are in a tight race to be the blue-and-burgundy ´pichichi´. In the last match against Elche, both Ferran and Rashford scored after assists from Fermín. The Valencia forward ended a goal drought in La Liga that dated back to his brace against Getafe at the end of September, while the English attacker continues to be decisive: he has already participated —with a goal or assist— in seven of the last eight league matches. Behind this trio are Lewandowski and Lamine Yamal, both with 4 goals. The Polish player returned against Elche after overcoming a muscle tear, and the young Catalan talent was the one who opened the scoring in that match.

A half-century of matches scoring

Although Barça is not reaching the scoring figures of the previous season, it maintains an impressive regularity: 50 consecutive matches scoring at least one goal. It is a historic mark that Flick´s team will seek to extend this Wednesday in Bruges, after having surpassed the club´s previous record weeks ago. The next challenge will be to reach the record of Real Madrid under Zinedine Zidane, which had 73 consecutive matches scoring.

Eleven different scorers

Without an exclusive scorer, the offensive responsibility is shared. So far, 11 different players have contributed to the team´s score: Ferran Torres, Fermín López, and Marcus Rashford (6), Lewandowski and Lamine Yamal (4), Raphinha (3), Araujo and Pedri (2), and with one goal each, Koundé, Eric García, and Dani Olmo. Also, there is the own goal by Unai Elgezabal (Levante), which completes the 37 goals scored by Flick´s team this season. Compared to the same stretch of last season —after the first 14 matches—, Barça had scored 47 goals, that is, 10 more than now. A decline that does not seem coincidental and reflects a clear change in the offensive identity of the team.