Barcelona kicked off a La Liga season without Lionel Messi for the first time in 18 years with a 4-2 win over Real Sociedad at the Camp Nou that should leave supporters cautiously optimistic about life without the GOAT.
Ronald Koeman’s line-up didn’t yield too many surprises, apart perhaps from a debut for Eric Garcia, with Pedri thrust straight back into action alongside the fit-again Frenkie de Jong.
The Barca coach, and Gerard Pique, had spoken before the game about the need to be united this season, and it was fun to watch the players attacking and defending as a team in an impressive opening spell that yielded three goals.