It was yet another magical evening at Camp Nou as Real Sociedad became the third victim of the manita at Camp Nou this season so far, after Sevilla and Real Madrid.
Barcelona are still as hungry as ever and they had one of their best performances of the season today. Real Sociedad didn't have a single shot on target and Valdés had the calmest match of the season; he was a mere spectator.
David Villa, Iniesta, Messi (brace) and Bojan were the scorers today. Messi's two goals were absolute masterpieces. After Antoni Gaudi and Juan Miró, Barcelona can now enjoy the unmatched artistic genius of Lionel Messi, who keeps painting sublime portraits on the pitch in every match. The first goal (Barcelona's third) was from a perfect link-up play with Daniel Alves. With only three one-twos, they destroyed the entire Real defense. The second was a solo masterpiece, where Messi dribbled past five defenders and ended with a brilliant finish.
But the Camp Nou can also enjoy, every week, arguably the greatest football team ever assembled. Today was just another spectacle.
Piqué was rested again, but he was not necessary. In fact, Barcelona's centre-back duo, Puyol and Abidal, had virtually nothing to do.
Xavi was once again sublime and controlled everything the team did going forward. His partner-in-crime Iniesta was also fantastic and scored a goal after a superb link-up play with Pedro. David Villa scored the opener and performed at his usual high level. Bojan came into the match for Pedro and scored the fifth in the last minute.
This match really had no story; it was Barcelona dazzling and Real Sociedad watching. The blaugrana completed over 900 passes and enjoyed 75% ball possession. 2 goals in the first half, 3 in the second.
With another blowout win, Barcelona kept their 2-point advantage in the standings, before a very difficult derby at Espanyol, who have a 100% home record this term.
There are only two matches left to play this year, at Espanyol and at Bilbao (Copa del Rey). These are two very difficult matches on paper; Barcelona must keep their unstoppable form in order to keep winning: Barcelona have scored 26 goals in their past six matches, while not conceeding a single one. Pep Guardiola and his team will be looking to keep this from before Christmas break.
Today's match also made the Ballon d'Or choice even more difficult, as Xavi, Messi and Iniesta all had impeccable performances. On January 10, the three Barcelona geniuses will be in the Ballon d'Or podium, in the first time that three players from the same academy will make the top-3.