After a summer of uncertainty for Barcelona, the 2017/18 season has started in a hugely positive manner for the Catalan club.

They did endure two humblings at the hands of bitter rivals Real Madrid in the Spanish Super Cup but in their following four games, Ernesto Valverde's side have been near enough perfect.

Barca have won their first three La Liga matches, scoring nine goals in the process and conceding none. Their 5-0 demolition of city rivals Espanyol on Saturday was perhaps their finest performance of 2017.

Lionel Messi scored five of their nine strikes and the Argentine continued his ferocious form in their Champions League bow against Juventus.

To be fair, the entire team carried their form into the fixture against the Italian champions, winning 3-0 at the Nou Camp.

Summer signing Ousmane Dembele made his first start for the club after appearing off the bench and recording an assist against Espanyol.

Throughout the game, the former Borussia Dortmund man was full of effort but a lot of things didn't come off for him.

He looked nervous and a video on Twitter has appeared showing Messi clearly doing his best to help his new colleague.

MESSI'S LEADERSHIP

Great stuff from Messi, who is turning into a proper leader on the pitch.

Dembele is a raw talent who will need nurturing if he is to match his Brazilian predecessor in the Barca forward line.

The French international was sensational in his campaign with Dortmund, recording the third most assists in Europe, behind Emil Forsberg and Kevin de Bruyne.

Dembele's move to Barca appeared to be on the cards for a few weeks and it turns out Paris Saint-Germain star Kylian Mbappe had a big part to play in the deal.

"We talked about it and he asked me what I thought. I told him to go there because it was a great opportunity for him," Mbappe said, per Express.

"He can really become a great player alongside Messi and Suarez in attack. He's really going to improve.

"He already has incredible talent, but he can make another step up."

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