Barcelona’s 6-1 win against Girona marks the beginning of a new era
Ernesto Valverde has finally used Lionel Messi, Luis Suárez, Ousmane Dembélé and Philippe Coutinho together. The Basque coach used his classical 4-4-2 formation, with Suárez and Messi up top, Dembélé on the right and Coutinho on the left.
According to transfermarkt, they have a combined transfer value of €435 million in the current market, with Messi the most valuable and Suárez the least. They smashed 6 goals and provided 5 assists for each other.
The Girona defence was clearly overwhelmed by the quality of the attack. Down the middle, the best footballer of all time and Uruguay’s highest scorer were bombarding the centre-backs. And down the wings, two of Barça’s biggest signings were giving the full-backs hell.
This terrific performance has led to the coinage of a new term for the attacking quartet, LSDC, L for Leo (the G.O.A.T), S for Suárez (‘El Pistolero’), D for Dembélé (the youngster) and C for Coutinho (the Brazilian magician).
In the coming games, Valverde might choose to unleash them. LSDC has got off to the best start possible, and it can remind fans of Sir Alex Ferguson’s treble-winning Manchester United. Back in the 1988-99 season, Sir Alex conquered the world with the quartet of Dwight Yorke, David Beckham, Andy Cole and Ryan Giggs.
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But at Barça, the quarter simply has more quality. And it is more powerful than the BBC at Real Madrid and the NMC at PSG. Karim Benzema and Gareth Bale are on the decline, while Mbappe is yet to break into the big leagues.
On the other hand, the LSDC has a perfect mix of experience and youth. Luis Suárez and Lionel Messi bring the experience while Coutinho and Dembélé bring the youth. While it is true that Suárez is declining physically, his technicals are as good as ever, as he showed against Girona.
Dembélé needs the experience, but he will get it in plenty next season if Ernesto Valverde continues to play this team. It is very versatile too, with plenty of backups in the squad. Denis Suárez and André Gomes are both capable of backing up Philippe Coutinho.
On the other side, Aleix Vidal can do brilliantly as backup for Ousmane Dembélé. Paco Alcácer is good enough to act as a backup, while José Arnáiz is expected to be called up to the first team next season, and he can back up the forwards.
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Next season, LSDC will be absolutely unleashed on world football, and the best defence in the world will cower in fear at the prospect of facing Lionel Messi, Luis Suárez, Ousmane Dembélé and Philippe Coutinho.