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MADRID, SPAIN - OCTOBER 25: Head coach Luis Enrique Martinez (L) of FC Barcelona gives instructions to his player Xavi Hernandez (R) during the La Liga match between Real Madrid CF and FC Barcelona at Estadio Santiago Bernabeu on October 25, 2014 in Madrid, Spain.  (Photo by Gonzalo Arroyo Moreno/Getty Images)
MADRID, SPAIN - OCTOBER 25: Head coach Luis Enrique Martinez (L) of FC Barcelona gives instructions to his player Xavi Hernandez (R) during the La Liga match between Real Madrid CF and FC Barcelona at Estadio Santiago Bernabeu on October 25, 2014 in Madrid, Spain. (Photo by Gonzalo Arroyo Moreno/Getty Images)Gonzalo Arroyo Moreno/Getty Images

Luis Enrique Setting Barcelona Up Perfectly for Assault on the Treble

Rik SharmaMay 20, 2015

Success is found in the smallest details. They need to be tweaked over the course of the season to maintain equilibrium and momentum.

Luis Enrique has recognised this, and the way he has adapted has been impressive. The results? So far, one Liga title. Potentially, an historic treble. Not bad.

Barcelona have three games of the season left; one at home in the league against Deportivo de la Coruna, then the Copa del Rey final against Athletic Club and the Champions League final against Juventus.

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There is a balance to be kept between letting the players relax and enjoy their title win and allowing them to slip below their best level.

The winning spirit, drive and determination that pulled them over the line in the title race needs to be kept and harnessed, not allowed to drift upward, like bubbles towards the top of a champagne flute.

Or rather, as they do it in Catalunya, cava. We saw the images of it being sprayed around the dressing room after their 1-0 win at the Vicente Calderon over Atletico Madrid.

MADRID, SPAIN - MAY 17:  Neyman of FC Barcelona jumps on top of teammates  after winning the La Liga at the end of the La Liga match between Club Atletico de Madrid and FC Barcelona at Vicente Calderon Stadium on May 17, 2015 in Madrid, Spain.  (Photo by

That's all well and good. And Enrique, who has previously shown himself to be quite strict with time off, allowed the squad to celebrate afterward at the plush Pacha nightclub, down by the beach at Barcelona's Vila Olimpica.

And then, for the first time since Christmas, excluding the international break, Enrique gave his men three days off.

Sport's Albert Masnou put together a piece which highlighted this, including a quote from Claudio Bravo's wife, who voiced her exasperation at the intense training regime. Masnou wrote:

"

Only the rotations that Luis Enrique has applied have allowed the players to arrive at this stage of the season fresh, just at the point when they are fighting for titles.

Claudio Bravo's wife has previously voiced her despair at having so little family time through her Twitter account: "For the fifth successive week of training there has only been one rest day. I don't know when it will end," she wrote.

"
BARCELONA, SPAIN - MARCH 22:  Claudio Bravo of Barcelona makes as save from Gareth Bale of Real Madrid CF during the La Liga match between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid CF at Camp Nou on March 22, 2015 in Barcelona, Spain.  (Photo by Alex Caparros/Getty Im

Having so much time off will feel odd for Barcelona's stars, but they and their families will be grateful for the respite. It should make them happy and energised when they return to training, ready for the finals ahead.

On Thursday, Xavi Hernandez will speak at a press conference after training, where he is expected to announce his departure to Al-Sadd.

JM Bertran says in Sport that Luis Enrique and Xavi's Barcelona team-mates may also be present, which would be a strong gesture of team spirit.

He also thinks that as well as celebrations at the Camp Nou after the Deportivo game, there will be a presentation next week, where Spanish football can formally offer its thanks to Xavi for his achievements.

BARCELONA, SPAIN - JANUARY 21:  Xavi Hernandez (C) of FC Barcelona conducts the ball between Arda Turan (L), Jorge Resurreccion 'Koke' (2nd L) and Gabriel 'Gabi' Fernandez (R) of Club Atletico de Madrid during the Copa del Rey Quarter-Final First Leg matc
BARCELONA, SPAIN - MARCH 08:  Luis Suarez of FC Barcelona (R) celebrates with his teammates Lionel Messi (C) and Xavi Hernandez of FC Barcelona after scoring his team's sixth goal during the La Liga match between FC Barcelona and Rayo Vallecano de Madrid

When Depor come calling to the Camp Nou on Saturday, they will be fighting hard, because they are still in a relegation battle. That is a boost for Barcelona, who won't be able to completely relax ahead of the next two games.

It is expected that Enrique will put out a semi-rotated side, to allow some players the opportunity to feature that they have been denied during a frantic run-in, where the best XI needed to be played every week.

It will also allow the players that need to keep their match fitness up do just that, while anybody who feels overloaded by the run to the Champions League final and La Liga's summit can rest.

Then comes the clash with Bilbao's Athletic Club, also at the Camp Nou, ratcheting up the pressure a little more as the players get firmly back into the swing of things.

That should allow Barcelona to arrive in Berlin ready to take on Juventus and potentially secure the treble for the second time in the club's history, something that no other side has ever achieved.

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