How Luis Enrique has tried to evolve Barcelona's style of play

How Luis Enrique has tried to evolve Barcelona's style of play

When Luis Enrique took charge of Barcelona he promised that, aside from bringing unlimited enthusiasm, he would work on aspects of play that made the team less predictable

"We want to surprise," he said on May 21, 2014. And he is demonstrating that. As well as the usual passing style, the manager is also exploring other ways of playing, such as on the counter attack.

An example of this was Neymar's goal at the Vicente Calderon on Wednesday night to make it 1-1. Barca, in hardly any touches, swept into Jan Oblak's area with pace, technique and precision.

The majority of the 94 goals Barca have scored in all competitions this season have been through the typical style of play which has always been practiced at the club (save for certain eras) but they have worked on finding other ways to break own defences.

Luis Enrique knows that Neymar's best characteristic is his explosiveness and he is finding ways to get that out of him. 

The Brazilian, for example, was also key in the win over Athletic Club earlier this season, scoring the first of his two goals in a 2-0 win on the counter in the 79th minute.

As well as countering, Barca have also increased their pressing high up the pitch once again. When they rob the ball in the opposition's half they always look to play the forwards in as quickly as possible. 

This was how Munir El Haddadi scored his goal against Elche on the opening day of the season.

It is not a case of choosing one style or another, it is a case of finding what is best for Barca. As well as having technical players like Lionel Messi, Xavi and Iniesta, there are also fast players like Messi, Neymar and Pedro -- why not take advantage of their qualities on the counter?

The debate remains open and there will be fans that say that the style is untouchable, but sometimes something different is required to undo a rival. 

In any case, the result will always have an enormous weight when the sentence is passed.