Clean sheet run returns

The run of clean sheets in LaLiga has returned. The shutout in the win against Cádiz means that FC Barcelona have now gone six league games in a row without conceding, equalling the team's best run in the league with Xavi at the helm.

Last season saw Ter Stegen win the Zamora trophy for the most clean sheets and Xavi's Barça side are known for being parsimonious when it comes letting their opponents score a goal. The blaugranes broke records for not conceding goals during the 2022/23 LaLiga season, with the defence and the German stopper performing tremendously well. You just have to consider that the keeper from Mönchengladbach ended last season in the league with 26 clean sheets. This achievement that has gone down in LaLiga history and also included a six game run of clean sheets from August to October 2022. 

The Catalans have now equalled that shutout record under Xavi. The win against Getafe at Montjuïc, the draw at San Mamés, the home win against Mallorca, the victory at the Metropolitano, another win against Las Palmas at the Estadi Olímpic, and this latest victory at the Nuevo Mirandilla form part of this run of league fixtures with clean sheets for FC Barcelona. No other team in the five major European leagues has managed the feat in 2024. Only Nice in Ligue 1 have bettered Barça this 2023/24 campaign with eight consecutive clean sheets from September to November 2023.

The race for the Zamora trophy

Clearly Pau Cubarsí's breakout, Christensen playing as a defensive midfielder, the collective improvement in effort and Ter Stegen's saves have helped to develop this impermeability in defence. It also means that the German stopper is in with a chance of retaining the Zamora trophy. The blaugrana number 1 doesn't figure on the list at present as he is yet to play the minimum number of 28 games required. He is on the right path, though, with the lowest average number of goals conceded per game of 0.80. Unai Simón is currently first on that list, having conceded 0.90 goals per game. With 7 matchdays remaining, Ter Stegen has the Zamora trophy within reach should the current run continue and he plays every remaining game.

The return of the run of clean sheets in LaLiga for FC Barcelona is great news!