Barcelona have started the season in fine form. In the summer it seemed impossible that all the transfer sagas were not going to affect Valverde's side at all, but they have won all their games in La Liga and in Europe so far. Plenty of victories, but there are some areas in which they need to improve.
Ernesto Valverde's side have no won eight consecutive games in the league and Champions League, conceding just two goals domestically and none in Europe. In that respect, it's happy days for the Catalan club.
However, their attack is not at it's strongest. In Barca's last five wins, their opponents have actually had more shots than them, a surprising stat (and even unimaginable in previous years) which will keep Valverde's feet firmly on the ground.
The 5-0 win over Espanyol (20 shots to 9) was the last match in which Barca managed more shots than their opponents, and they have gone five consecutive games without out-shooting their rivals: 3-0 vs Juventus (9 v 13), 1-2 vs Getafe (13-7), 6-1 vs Eibar (11-13), 0-3 vs Girona (13-9) and 0-1 vs Sporting (13-9).
One thing which sticks out is the fact that Eibar still managed more shots than Barcelona, especially with the emphatic nature of the scoreline. Apart from perhaps Juventus, it is certainly surprising that all of Barca's opponents generated more dangerous moments, although they were clearly much less clinical than Messi and co.