Forget MSN... return of Busquets will make Arsenal's job mission impossible

The Spain midfielder was left on the bench away to Las Palmas and once again Barcelona struggled without him - but he'll be back to pull the strings in London on Tuesday night.

More than just a trident. Barcelona's much-lauded strikeforce of Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar score the majority of goals and claim the headlines for Luis Enrique's superb side, but there is one man who remains somewhat unheralded and who is arguably as important as the MSN: Sergio Busquets.

The midfielder is rarely left out of the Barca team, but when he is the Blaugrana are never quite the same. They weren't at their best in a recent 2-1 win at Levante when the 27-year-old was rested by his coach - and it was the case once again at Las Palmas on Saturday.

Luis Enrique shuffled his pack ahead of Barca's trip to Arsenal in the Champions League on Tuesday night. And if Gunners fans were encouraged by the Catalans' disjointed display in the Canary Islands on Saturday, they have been lulled into a false sense of security - because Busquets will be back to pull the strings in London.

Underrated, undervalued and under appreciated by the majority of football fans, Busquets is one of those players adored and admired by Barca aficionados, coaches and fellow professionals. A lot of what he does escapes the naked eye, especially on television, yet he is fundamental in winning the ball back, recycling possession and setting up attacks - a tactical dream. 

Against Las Palmas, Barca started strongly and went ahead within six minutes as Suarez scored to continue his rich vein of form in front of goal. That's 41 for the season for the in-form Uruguayan now and 15 in his last nine appearances.

But instead of taking control as it looked like the club would, Barca was pegged back. Willian Jose equalized for the home side after 10 minutes and the Catalans needed a Neymar strike late in the first half to go in ahead at the interval.

Without Busquets, Barca had just 53 percent of the possession and fewer shots on goal than Las Palmas (13 to the locals' 16). All of that is extremely unusual and it was a sign of how the Catalans did not have things all its own way in the absence of the midfield linchpin.

Barca suffered similarly in the days of Pep Guardiola. When the former club captain was in the pivot position, everything seemed smooth and orderly for the Blaugrana. But when he was missing, balance and control was lost. Much the same now happens these days in the absence of Busquets.

The midfield trio of Andres Iniesta, Sergi Roberto and Arda Turan lacked intensity without Busquets and Ivan Rakitic, who came on in the second half to help the visiting side hold on to the slender advantage.

In the meantime, Barca also missed the presence and the distribution of Gerard Pique in defense as the center back also sat out the match ahead of the trip to The Emirates in the Champions League last-16 clash on Tuesday night.

"We were more effective than anything else," Luis Enrique said afterwards. "I don't think we played at a lower rhythm. We had chances to score more goals towards the end."

Barca could end up playing more matches in 2015-16 than in any other season in the club's history and having led the Catalan outfit to the treble last term, Luis Enrique knows he has to rotate his team.

However, Busquets has no real replacement and it is all too apparent when he is rested or missing through injury. Some supporters have championed Barca B's Sergi Samper for the slot when the Spain star is absent, but the youngster does not seem quite ready to fill his teammate's sizable shoes.

Asked about Arsenal, Luis Enrique said: "It's a 180-minute tie against a complicated rival that has the quality to cause us problems. It will be difficult, like everything."

It certainly won't be easy, but Saturday's showing against Las Palmas means little - because with Busquets back in the team on Tuesday, it looks like mission impossible for the Gunners.

Goal.com