Not even the most optimistic culers would have predicted at the start of the season that Barça would be nine points ahead of Madrid with only seven matchdays left in the League. The blaugrana lead is highly commendable, considering the long-term injuries of key players, the team's youth, and the historical proportion of players who have come up from La Masia and fill the lineups every week. Economic necessity forced them to look for sporting virtue at home, and indeed, Barça has found it.