Barcelona are unconvincing leaders Barcelona Top on goal difference

Ernesto Valverde hasn't started the year in the way he would like, with Barcelona's 2-2 draw with Espanyol keeping the club at the top of the LaLiga Santander table, but in a far from convincing manner.

The league championship seems destined to be fought until the final matchday this term, and Los Cules have already failed their first post-Christmas objective, which was to retain their two-point advantage over Real Madrid heading into the Supercopa de Espana excursion in Saudi Arabia.

Barcelona are far away from their best, although this isn't a new development with the team having scarcely set the stage alight since the beginning of the campaign.

Somehow the team overturned a 1-0 deficit against Espanyol, and with the game appearing to be in hand at 1-2, they imploded.

Frenkie de Jong was sent off and defensive lapses allowed Wu Lei to score a late equalising goal, the social impact of which reverberated around Asia.

Barcelona have been fragile this term, giving away far more points in the first half of a season than what has been normal for them since 2010, and the worrying signs remain.

There would be some sympathy if this was a Blaugrana side at the beginning of a cycle, trying to formulate a style of play in line with the club's values, but that isn't the case.

Valverde's football has been criticised by supporters and it certainly isn't as innovative as Pep Guardiola's or as ruthlessly exciting as Luis Enrique's, although he doesn't necessarily have the same tools with which to work.

This Barcelona team don't dominate matches, they win because of pieces of individual brilliance from Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez.

There isn't the fluid patter of attack which was characterised by Samuel Eto'o, Thierry Henry and Messi, or even the Argentine along with Suarez and Neymar.

You have to go back to the 2007/08 season with Frank Rijkaard to find the last time a Barcelona team had only 40 points at this stage of a season, whereas not since 2003/04 have Los Cules conceded as many goals as they have this term.