Five keys to Barcelona’s 3-1 win over Juventus in Uefa Champions League final

Luis Suarez goes from bite ban to Barca hero, Primera Liga champions more than Lionel Messi, Buffon brilliance not enough and Rakitic better than Cesc.

Barcelona celebrate victory with the trophy after the Uefa Champions League Final against Juventus at Olympic Stadium on June 6, 2015 in Berlin, Germany. (Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images)

Berlin // Five reasons why Barcelona are kings of European football, after their 3-1 triumph over Juventus in the Uefa Champions League final on Saturday:

Suarez goes from bite ban to Barca hero

Luis Suarez’s Barcelona career started late as he served a four-month ban for biting Juventus defender Giorgio Chiellini at the World Cup.

Barca’s faith in the Uruguayan despite his well-known misdemeanours has been richly rewarded, not just with the winning goal with his side on the ropes after Alvaro Morata’s stunning equaliser, but with a series of crucial strikes that landed Barcelona the treble.

Suarez also netted the winner in the vital 2-1 win over Real Madrid in March to set Barca on course for the La Liga title and scored doubles in the away wins at Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain en route to the Champions League final.

Read more:

Barca are more than Messi

The Argentine showed flashes of his brilliance despite not managing to become the first man to score in three Champions League finals, most notably with a powerful drive that Gianluigi Buffon parried into the path of Suarez to turn home the crucial second goal.

However, this was a triumph for a Barca team often overshadowed by the remarkable 122 goals scored by Messi, Suarez and Neymar this season.

Andres Iniesta was named man-of-the-match after his glorious assist for Ivan Rakitic’s early opener, the defence held firm under fire in the second-half, and Pedro’s unselfishness to tee up Neymar for the third goal in stoppage time spoke volumes of a team spirit rarely demonstrated by a squad packed full of star names.

Buffon brilliance not enough

The Italian legend rolled back the years on the ground where he became a World Cup champion nine years ago by keeping his side in the game with incredible saves from Dani Alves and Suarez as Barca threatened to run riot at 1-0.

However, Buffon, 37, remains without a Champions League winner’s medal: Juventus lost to AC Milan on penalties in the 2003 final and his heroics were not enough to keep out Barcelona.

Madrid calling for Morata?

Discarded by his boyhood club Real Madrid at the start of the season, Morata has demonstrated his worth by becoming the first Spaniard to score in both legs of a Champions League semi-final and the final in the same year.

Madrid were the victims of his prowess in the last four and the first goal of his career against Barcelona will do nothing to quiet the calls for Madrid to exercise their buy-back option on the 22-year-old striker next summer.

Rakitic better than Cesc

The sale of Cesc Fabregas to Chelsea to make way for Rakitic last June was seen as a reactive move after the former’s poor end to a trophyless campaign last season.

However, Rakitic’s energy and eye for goal has complemented the talents of Sergio Busquets, Xavi and Andres Iniesta even better than their Spanish international colleague during an ultimately disappointing three-year spell at the Camp Nou.

The best illustration of that came with the Croatian’s cool finish from Iniesta’s pass after just four minutes to give Barca a flying start in Berlin.

Follow us on Twitter at our new home at NatSportUAE