Let's say that, before the season began, I told you that there would be a team in Spain that scores so many goals that they might cause scorekeepers across the country to refuse to work in protest of their unfairly demanding working conditions. This team would produce the leading goal scorer in Europe. They would score 33 goals through 10 matches. Come late October, they'd have eight more goals than any other team across the continent.
You would've digested this information, nodded your head, and said, "Of course. Real Madrid did the LaLiga-Champions League double last year -- and then they signed the best attacker in the world! They already had the Ballon d'Or favorite, Vinícius Júnior, and now they have Kylian Mbappé! Everyone else is doomed."
You, of course, would have been wrong.
Through 10 games, it's Barcelona's attack, not Real Madrid's, that is reaching these rarely seen heights in Spain. Madrid remain undefeated and only three points back of their eternal rivals in the table, but it's been a grind. Barcelona have won five league matches by at least three goals -- Madrid have scored three goals in a LaLiga game only twice so far this season. There's one team in Spain that looks like an all-time-great attacking side -- and it's not the one with Vinícius, Mbappé and Jude Bellingham.
While there's still plenty of season to go and Madrid do still remain the betting favorites to retain the LaLiga crown, there's no question as to which has been the better team through the first 10 games of the season. Barcelona are firing on all cylinders while Real Madrid haven't quite clicked into gear.
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So, how did Barcelona surpass Madrid? Ahead of Saturday's El Clasico, live on ESPN+, let us look at the reasons, arranged in ascending order of importance.