Rakitic-Suárez, the perfect partnership

During the Granada game, Luis Suarez and Ivan Rakitic proved to be a match made in heaven.

The Uruguayan forward's uncanny ability to shake free off his mark near goal together with the Croat's eagle eye have given Barcelona another string to their already powerful bow.

If there is a team that wholly depends on their midfielders to work properly, that team is Barcelona. Because of the way they set themselves up, their style, the way they develop their game, they need rock-steady men in the middle of the park like no other. Men such as Ivan Rakitic, whose absence in the team's line-up more often than not comes to mean defeat – the Bernabéu, San Sebastian, Málaga at home...

In Granada, just the opposite occurred. Rakitic started in midfield together with Xavi and Mascherano and was without doubt the best of the three of them. He played his part in all three of his team's goals, storming into the defence and providing two precision-perfect passes.

The player wasn't just a maestro creating danger, but together with Mascherano was also pretty good at snuffing it out. As he usually is with Busquets. The Croat adapted perfectly well to Barça's game at the start of the season, when they hardly let in any goals at all. Until the manager's desire to rotate put him in the dug-out...

The Croat hasn't started in eight games. Apart from the three defeats, Luis Enrique has looked to him for the clashes with Villarreal (when they made a comeback) and Valencia (winning at the death). Signing the ex-Sevilla player was due to a necessity that Rakitic covers perfectly – when he is allowed to play, of course.