Why Barcelona Will Win the Champions League

Listen. We know. You probably read this title and went into meltdown, furiously searching for the writer's Twitter handle to call him an idiot.

But just stay with me here.

Obviously this Barcelona team is riddled with inadequacies. All signs seem to point to this being the weakest squad Barça have assembled since they last won the Champions League all the way back in 2015.

For all of their earth shattering attacking brilliance, Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi's inability to press with anything close to the intensity required in the modern game is at the heart of many of their on-field issues.

With the forwards incapable of pinning back the opposition, the Barça midfield has been far too easy to bypass. This is likely to be of particular concern when facing Bayern Munich in the Champions League quarter finals.

Barcelona's pedestrian forward line are unlikely to prevent Alphonso Davies and Joshua Kimmich gliding past them with. Davies and Kimmich have averaged 265 and 208 progressive yards per 90 minutes in this season's competition. The latter's would be even higher if not for a few cameos in central midfield.

With Bayern possessing some much thrust out wide, Quique Setien's already toothless midfield are likely to be pulled wide to cover - which then frees up space for Thiago Alcantara and Leon Goretzka to pull the string in the middle. It's a recipe for disaster, with Liverpool deploying a similar strategy during their historic Anfield victory over the Blaugrana last season.

Even if they do get past Bayern, a likely semi final against Manchester City and final against Paris Saint-Germain or heaven forbid, Atalanta, is likely to expose them to similar issues.

Then there's Barça's centre-backs. After years of dominance, Gerard Pique has played like a shadow of his imperious former self this season, looking slow on the half turn and prone to a clumsy mistake. His defensive partners, Clement Lenglet and the frail Samuel Umtiti have also been prone to lapses in concentration.

Oh well, at least they're not facing a particularly good striker on Friday.

What's that? They're up against Robert Lewandowski. Oh dear.

Despite these problems - which have led to Barcelona surrendering the La Liga title and crashing out of the Copa del Rey early on this season - we cannot rule them out as Champions League contenders entirely.

In Messi they still have the best player in the world. No if, no buts.

La Pulga is clearly playing with a fiery determination at the moment, as his defiant opening goal against Napoli showed. Not be deterred in the face of several snarling defenders, he picked himself up off the floor following some meaty challenges and bent an improbable finish past David Ospina.

Messi under normal circumstances is scary enough but facing him when he's fuelled by the motivation of avoiding a rare trophyless season is nothing short of terrifying.

The supporting cast around Barça talisman is also nowhere near as bad as has been painted over the last few months. Back from injury and looking rejuvenated, Suarez remains a lethal goalscorer while Antoine Griezmann is capable of the spectacular - even if he has struggled to make his mark in Europe this season. The presence of Ansu Fati off the bench adds a different threat to their offensive arsenal.

At the opposite end of the pitch, Blaugrana are in safe hands. Marc-Andre ter Stegen's 0.826 save percentage is the best of any goalkeeper still in the competition and third overall. He's also a terrific penalty stopper and spot kicks are possible due to the strength of their likely oppositions en route to the final.

It may not be the Barcelona Way™but a gritty Atletico Madrid-style show of rearguard action could be needed and Ter Stegen will be key to that.

Though the squad is clearly not what it was, there is also life left in serial winners and wily operators Gerard Pique and Sergio Busquets, with Barça's squad - strangely - the most experience left in, with Real Madrid, Juventus and Liverpool out the way.

So they you have it. Definitive proof that Barcelona could just surprise us all and lift that famous trophy. With Messi, Ter Stegen and the old dogs of war, anything is possible.

Whether or not individual brilliance will be enough to cover up Barcelona's systematic shortcomings in three one off games remains to be seen.

Stranger things have happened though...