Barcelona managed a 2-1 win over Athletic Bilbao, but the victory offered minor respite to a team that is simply playing out a lost season. While Barcelona is in second place, the team has already played one more game than its immediate rivals Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid and barring a shocking collapse by both clubs, the team is likely to lose out on the Spanish League title this season.

So with 2013-14 already lost, what can Los Cules expect to take place heading into 2014-15? Here is a look at a few things that Barcelona should do to remain competitive.

The sale of Lionel Messi has become a major conversation and, if Barcelona is willing to listen, the money that is acquired could be used to help the team in the summer of 2015. However, the sale of Messi would essentially dictate that the team realizes that it is in shambles and in need of a rebuild. Is that really the public image Barcelona wants to portray? It is the braver decision, but from a business standpoint may not be the ideal one. So what does Barcelona do to avoid such a rash decision?

A rebuild is impossible this season mainly because Barcelona cannot make any purchases during the next two transfer windows. As a result, the team cannot purchase a top centreback to lead the group. It essentially means that the team has to make due with whatever it currently has. That means that Gerard Pique, Javier Mascherano and Marc Bartra will be the top options in the middle of the backline, especially if Carles Puyol is in face leaving for good. One option would be to make Alex Song adapt and learn to play in the middle heading into next season. That gives the club an extra option in the middle and would help rest the injury-prone Pique. Even though Pique lacks speed, his size has often served the team well in defending set pieces. Bartra should also be given a more prominent role from the get-go in order to avoid overplaying the out-of-position Mascherano.

But before the team thinks of internal solutions on defense, it must salvage its goaltending situation. Both current starters Jose Manuel Pinto and Victor Valdes have expiring contracts. Without them, Barcelona is faced with starting young Oier Olazabal. The 24-year-old has not been given any chance to play this season, indicating that the club does not have much confidence in his future. The constant buzz about Barcelona looking to acquire other netminders has furthered this assumption. This means that the team has to do everything possible to resign both Valdes and Pinto in order to avoid a potential problem in goal. Pinto is far from ideal, but he has the experience to help the team. Valdes is even more indispensible as he was in top form before suffering a season-ending injury. Of course Valdes had already stated that he intended to leave the team this offseason, but it is possible that he may not have much leverage with other clubs after his injury.

Offensively the team is still solid, but it might be time to inject it with young talent. Gerard Deulofeu, Rafinha, Bojan and Keirrison are all on loan. The first three are more than capable of being impact players for the club moving forward and it might be time to ease them into the team in order to give Barcelona more explosive attacking options. Xavi and Andres Iniesta can still lead the midfield, but the two aging Spaniards are showing that age is catching up to them and it might behoove Barcelona to have more attacking options with which to replace them from time to time.

The team must also do a re-election to alter its front office. The club's image is in shambles and a re-election this summer would be vital to re-establishing the Barcelona brand. A new coach is also essential, especially after Gerardo Martino proved that his tactics were questionable at best. His inability to get the players to alter their system proved that he lacked the respect in the dressing room to make any major progress.