Luis Enrique believes Barcelona will have to cope with the pressure of winning every game if they are to regain the Primera Division crown.
Barcelona capitalised on Real Madrid’s defeat at Athletic Bilbao by climbing to the top of La Liga for the first time since early November with a 6-1 demolition of Rayo Vallecano on Sunday.
Despite being pleased with his side’s display, Enrique urged a degree of caution, stressing everything was still to be achieved.
“We’re elated, but the objective is to be leading at the end of the season,” Enrique told the club’s official website. “I’ve already said that everybody can lose games, so we have to keep playing well and win every match.
“It’s heavy having to win every single match. Each game is more important than the last. “The situation we’re in is the fruit of our collective effort. We are where we want to be but there are lots of teams that what to be here too.
“We knew it would be tough from the outset today and that if we could beat their pressure we would have scoring chances.
“Seeing what Rayo were giving us in midfield, we went with Xavi and Iniesta inside and they gave us a lot of chances to get the ball to our forwards,” Lionel Messi produced yet another record breaking performance as he notched his 32nd hat-trick for Barcelona.
While praising a number of star performers, Enrique highlighted the burgeoning partnership between Messi and Luis Suarez, a combination which produced five of the six goals at the Camp Nou.
“Suarez and Messi are having more and more chemistry, and today we all saw what they bring to the team,” Enrique added.
“I like [Ivan] Rakitic wherever he plays on the field.
He always knows what to do with the ball and is one of the best signings we’ve ever had. “[Gerard] Pique has always known how to score, above all on set plays. It’s a perfect solution for games when our opponents collapse defensively.”
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Source Sky Sports