4 most improved players this season at Barcelona
FC Barcelona is one of the biggest clubs in the world, with an illustrious history that makes winning trophies every season a given at the club.
Barcelona is expected not to just win, but also win very convincingly and it is under the weight of this humongous pressure that the player files out in the famous colours of the Blaugrana every week.
This season has been good up till this point for Barcelona, as the club remains on course to achieve its objectives, as they hold a significant lead in their bid to retain their LaLiga title, while also still in the running for a fifth consecutive Copa del Rey crown and the one they are most interested in - the UEFA Champions League.
Barca possesses extraordinary players within its ranks like Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, Sergio Busquets but to name a few and each of this players have all played at their usual levels, contributing their quota to the Barcelona cause.
While the aforementioned have flourished, there have been others who have also been below par, as they have just struggled along without making any telling contribution to Barcelona's season thus far.
There is, however, another group of players, all talented within their own rights, but having yet to really make their mark in Barca's colours owing to some factors such as injuries or being new arrivals and these players are the subject of this piece.
In this slideshow, we shall be taking a look at four Barcelona players who have improved the most this season.
#4 Carles Alena
The 21-year-old has been at Barcelona all his professional life, joining the side in 2005 and progressing through all the youth ranks until making his senior debut in 2016.
Alena had been captain of the Barcelona youth side and scored an amazing solo goal (which Messi himself would have been proud of) in a UEFA Youth League match against AS Roma to announce himself to the world.
Alena's progress in the senior team has been hampered by injuries and the abundance of talent within the Barcelona midfield ranks, but his impressive technique and familiarity with the workings of the club give him an edge.
Indeed, at the start of the season, this writer identified him as one of a number of fringe players who would make an impact this season and so far, Alena has played the part accordingly.
So far, he has made eight LaLiga appearances, up from the three he made in the 2016/17 season, scoring one goal and if he continues with his rapid development, he is sure to become a mainstay in the middle of the park for a number of years to come.
Also see : Fantasy Premier League , Fantasy Premier League Tips, EPL Transfer News