So how do you beat Barcelona? There is of course a short answer to that, which is simply: you don’t! 39 teams have confronted Barcelona since their season began, only 3 have come away with a win, just 3 have managed draws. But it’s not only the fact that they’ve won over 80% of their games that’s impressed, it’s also the manner in which they’ve done so. Not only have Barcelona averaged over 70 percent possession in their league games to date (which is almost unheard over such a long period) but they’re scoring at a phenomenal rate as well. They’ve netted 67 goals so far in the league alone - more than any other side across the top five European Leagues - and you’d have to say they look a good bet to break the record tally of 107 goals set by the John Toshack led Madrid side in the 1989/90 season.

Before their draw on Saturday, they recorded their 16th straight league win to beat the great Real Madrid side of the late 50s' record , when beating Atletico Madrid (who have been a bit of a bogey team for Barça in recent years). Add to that a rock solid defence: one that’s conceded just 18 goals in 21 league games and you start to come to the conclusion that it isn’t so much an uphill task that Arsenal face, but a herculean one!

But then Arsenal might take some small comfort from that analogy- since it’s the newly promoted minnows of Hercules who remain the only side to take 3 points from Barcelona thus far (the other 2 defeats were cup games). And besides when did Arsenal ever take the easy route?

So having studied the blips in the Barcelona season so far, I’ve identified 8 ways that Arsenal might go about beating them.

1 - Weather the storm
I’m sure you all remember how Barcelona caused absolute havoc in those first 25 minutes of last year’s Emirates encounter. Barça peppered the Arsenal goal and only a string of superb saves from Almunia kept Arsenal in the tie. Well, don’t make the mistake of thinking that was a one-off. Barcelona set out to shock and awe their opponent from the first whistle. It’s as much a part of their strategy as their neat passing possession football! In this years ‘Classico’ they blitzed Real Madrid 5-0, but the hard work was done within 17 minutes by which time they led by two goals to nil. In three of their last five games they’ve been two, three and four-nil up before even 35 minutes have passed. You might think Almería would’ve been crushed at the 4-0 half-time scoreline, but in reality they were probably relieved. After all it was 5-0 by that time in their 8-0 league defeat. Pushovers? You might think so, but the previous week Almería had held Real Madrid to a tightly fought one-all draw.

The lesson is clear, but it’s easier said than done, of course. Battening down the hatches is probably not the best answer for Arsenal as it’s neither they’re natural style nor their strength. Arsenal are probably better off trying to hold possession and dictate the pace of the game themselves. Better still would be to put Barça on the back foot as Betis did recently in their second leg cup clash. But the danger there lies in getting carried away: Arsenal in full steam are always at risk of over-committing or forgetting their defensive responsibilities. You could almost view the first leg itself as a storm of sorts to for Arsenal to weather. For although Arsenal must then travel to the Nou Camp- if they could do so with a respectable score line and a Carling Cup win in the meantime- then you’d feel much of the pressure would be off of them already.

2 - The Bilbao method
Now this may seem strange considering Athletic Club Bilbao haven’t actually beaten Barcelona this season, but what they did do in their 0-0 and 1-1 ‘Copa del Rey’ home and away legs is both match the intensity with which Barça play, and come within a whisker of sending them out of the competion. Barça squeeked through on the narrowest of margins: away goal difference. Bilbao looked to hit Barça on the break with quick vertical passing and interchange. But it’s probably not offensively where Arsenal should draw inspiration from the Basque side. No, where they most impressed was in defence, where Bilbao did several things to disrupt Barcelona’s natural flow. Firstly, they kept excellent shape and were very quick to get their midfielders back to form a double line of defence between the ball and their goal. The forwards meanwhile swarmed at the opposition full backs denying them any easy outlet passes.This pressure was maintained right across the pitch, so no sooner would a Barça player recieve the ball then he’d be closed down and often driven back by the tenacity of the Athletic defence. None more so than in the centre of midfield.

Now many teams have tried this tactic against Barça this year and have just been cut apart by their incisive passing (Español’s 5-0 defeat would be a prime example), but what I think made the difference for Bilbao here was that, one, their midfielders were well disciplined in tracking the many darting runs made by their opposite numbers and, two, they were really alert to winning all the second balls, so that as soon as their pressing caused the ball to slip, even slightly, from Barca’s grasp- they were on to it in a flash and ready to start their next attack.

3 - The Copenhagen method
In the Champions League Copenhagen also gave Barcelona a run for their money in their 1-1 draw in Denmark. In fact Barcelona could easily have come home empty-handed as Copenhagen’s Senegalese striker N’Doye was first clattered into by keeper Valdes just outside the box but nothing was given, and then had a goal disallowed despite making only minimal contact with the defender Adibal before scoring.

What did Copehagen do well? Like Bilbao, they also kept good shape- and one thing that helped them do so is that they looked to finish each move with a shot, thus giving them time to resume their defensive positions before Barça had time to counter. Another slight difference was that they also seemed to target the Barça centre backs when in possession. Puyol in particular was given virtually no time on the ball. Interestingly, they also had a lot of joy from an attacking perspective by playing diagonal balls wide and behind the full backs.

4 -The Sevilla Method
Sevilla shocked Barcelona earlier on in the season with a 3-1 victory in the Super Copa. How did they do it? Well, Sevilla also caused Barcelona problems by getting behind their full-backs. Their first goal came after Luis Fabiano cut cleverly from inside-to-out to recieve a ball past the right full-back. Whilst their second and third both came from great wide play from wingers Jesus Navas and Diego Perrotti. Barcelona struggled to control those two quick wide players all game, which is yet more evidence to suggest that Theo Walcott should start on the right flank- especially considering what a difference his introduction made for Arsenal last year (not to mention his excellent form of late). However it also suggests they’ll need either Nasri back to full fitness- or Arshavin back on form- for them to pose maximum threat to Barcelona.

5 -The Hercules method
Perhaps not to be recommended this one, as it seemed to rely almost solely on making sure you put your shooting boots on. As the match statistics (below) show: in any category other than shooting accuracy- it was the Catalan club who dominated. Nevertheless, we all know the importance of taking your chances in the big games, and for that reason you’d think that Van-Persie would be favored up top ahead of the more profligate Chamakh or Bendtner.

Shots on Goal – Barcelona 17 (9 on target), Hercules 9 (7 on target)
Corners – Barcelona 14, Hercules 2
Possession - Barcelona 77%, Hercules 23%

6 - The Betis method
Lose the first leg 5-0, need I say more...?

7 - The ‘hope Puyol doesn’t play’ method
The clue’s in the title for this one. Puyol didn't take part in any of Barcelona's 3 losses this season: 3-1 (vs Sevilla), 0-2 (vs Hercules) and 3-1 (Betis) ( thanks to @pedritonumeros for that stat) .He also happens to be recovering from injury presently. But before Gooners get too hopeful, he is predicted to return in time for the Arsenal clash.

8 - Spot the odd one out!
Messi, Villa, Xavi, Iniesta, Pedro. Have you spotted the odd one out yet? Well, the answer is Xavi, the other 4 all feature in Barça’s list of their top 5 goal scorers - Messi 37 - Pedro 19 - Villa 17 - Iniesta 7 - Bojan 4. Messi, Villa , Iniesta and Xavi may be bigger household names than Pedro, (or Pedrito as he’s affectionately known by Spaniards) but the statistics suggest that only Messi poses more of a goal threat. Pedro is a lightning quick left sided forward/winger who preys on the unsuspecting full back to nip in and score. What’s more he’s in tip-top form too having scored in their last six league games. I Hope you’re listening at the back there Emmanuel Eboue? (Sagna is of course suspended for the 1st leg)-Because the message is crystal clear: underestimate Pedro at your peril!

Well there you go, that’s how Arsenal could skin this particular cat - Whether they will or not, of course, all remains to be seen. I for one can’t wait to see them try!

Twitter: benvenceremos