Sunday 10 January 2016 13:29, UK
With Arda Turan making his La Liga debut for Barcelona on Saturday, Adam Bate assesses his performance. Could he make the Spanish and European champions even better?
Diego Simeone always said this man was "different" to the rest of the Atletico Madrid squad. He was the one who'd bring a bit of calm amid the relentless Atleti industry. It was a compliment. But at Barcelona, Arda Turan's aim isn't to be different but instead to look at home. He now has his wish.
Barca's transfer ban meant Turan had to wait. He'd acknowledged this would "be hard" upon agreeing the switch to the Nou Camp in the summer. Luis Enrique said Turan was "ready to play" in September, but prior to this week all of his competitive football this season had come with Turkey.
Now that's changed. After getting a taste of it in the Copa del Rey in midweek, Turan got the chance to line up behind the fabled front trio for the first time against Granada on Saturday. "The only thing I want is to adapt to the team as soon as possible," he had said. It didn't take long.
His impact was as swift as the wait had been long. Only eight minutes into the game, Turan collected the ball on the left edge of the penalty box and threaded a pass in behind the visitors' defence. Lionel Messi latched onto it and stroked the ball first time beyond Andres in the Granada goal.
When Messi doubled the lead inside 15 minutes after fine work from Neymar and Luis Suarez, Turan could have been forgiven for thinking that everything comes easily at Barcelona. It's certainly a far cry from what he'd known at Atletico, a club that Simeone styles as having to battle for everything.
Both Arda Turan and Aleix Vidal have had a fantastic attitude in training and everybody is looking forward to seeing them feature regularly.
However, Barcelona's brilliance needs facilitating. While Messi and Neymar play, others must work. Midfielder Ivan Rakitic knows the rules. "If I have to run 5,000 kilometres for one of them to have their best moment, I will do it," the Croatian told Marca in the summer.
Even among the big three, there's a pecking order. There was a moment in the Club World Cup final in Japan last month when Suarez waved Messi away as he went to press the ball. It was as if he was saying, 'let me chase that down for you - it's not your job'.
At Atletico, Turan was more likely to be the beneficiary of that food chain. At Barcelona, he must accept his new reality and there were signs on Saturday of a willingness to do precisely that. Turan covered an impressive 9.1 kilometres in his 72 minutes on the pitch.
The 28-year-old was also one of only two Barcelona players on the pitch who won possession of the ball as many times as they lost it. Interestingly, that defensive work came in useful in the build-up to Messi's hat-trick goal early in the second half too.
Turan won back possession of the ball and then showed his class, stepping over it in order to allow Sergi Roberto's pass to run through to Neymar. The Brazilian's subsequent shot hit the post and Messi turned in the rebound.
With the game won, he began to enjoy himself. Although stopping short of the sort of showboating that Neymar is so fond of, Turan did wander over to the right flank in order to indulge in a spot of keep-ball with Dani Alves.
He was greeted with a warm ovation when replaced by Adriano. By that stage, he'd provided the home supporters with plenty of evidence of why Guillem Balague told Sky Sports he's the "perfect player when the game needs controlling". Turan completed 54 of his 62 passes.
The only nod to his aggressive Atletico past was the fact that he conceded more fouls than any of his Barcelona team-mates. That aside, he delivered a passable impression of Andres Iniesta - the player he'd described as his "idol" upon arriving.
It may be that Turan will be the man to deputise in the forward positions if there's an injury, but against Granada he patrolled the left side of Barca's three-man midfield, doing the job of feeding those front men. Thirteen of his passes were to Neymar ahead of him. Job done.
Was there ever any doubt? "Some players are remembered for their goals," wrote Juan Rodriguez in his biography of Turan. "Others for great saves. Some are known for their fantastic runs up the wing, with crosses made in heaven.
"Others recover balls like magicians and know exactly where to send them to. Then, there are those that are a race apart. Those you can't help falling in love with. Those that entertain. Those that always choose the most spectacular option to play. Arda Turan."
As such, he's not a natural in the role of foot-soldier. But maybe that's not what Turan has in mind for his time at Barcelona. Maybe he will fuse the work ethic honed under Simeone with the creative expression that's always been in his repertoire. Maybe the best team on the planet just got better.
