Barcelona stalwart Lionel Messi has said that their loss against Real Sociedad in January was the turning point in the Catalan giants’ season
Luis Enrique’s side started the year with a 1-0 loss against David Moyes’ Real Sociedad. Barcelona struggled to get going in the match after conceding an early goal and eventually La Real emerged victorious.
Messi along with Neymar started on the bench; the Argentine was introduced by Enrique at the start of the second half whereas the Brazilian didn’t get on the pitch until the hour mark.
There were murmurs of differences between Messi and Enrique as a result of the forward being rested at Anoeta. Eventually things calmed down and since then Barcelona have hit a purple patch.
The Catalan giants are on an eleven-match winning streak having won six La Liga fixtures and five in the Spanish Cup. They have plundered 42 goals in the process and are just one point shy of league leaders Real Madrid.
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Messi acknowledges that Barcelona are enjoying a good spell of form and pinpointed their first match of the year against La Real as the turning point of the Catalan outfit’s campaign.
“The truth is that we're in good shape at the moment”, the Argentine said in an interview with Mundo Leo.
“Luckily, after the match against Real Sociedad, where we didn't start the year very well, everything changed.”
The 27-year-old added that Barcelona’s splendid run of form has changed the dynamics of the team and they have become more confident as a result of their change in fortunes.
“Now there is a different dynamic to the team, everything we do comes off. The team have a lot of confidence and we've changed the attitude and drive.”
However, the Argentine added that the season is far from over and Barcelona cannot afford to take their foot off the pedal as yet.
“That's why we're playing like we are at the moment, but there is still a long way to go.”
Messi will look to add to his 26 league goals in order to help Barcelona clinch their 12th win on the trot when they face Malaga in their next La Liga fixture this weekend.
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