Full Time: Leganes 0-3 Barcelona
It was far from beautiful. But Barcelona carry on their glorious joy ride in La Liga. Still unbeaten, top of the table, this Barcelona side are difficult to evaluate. Recently, their football hasn’t quite pleased the eyes and one could even argue that the Catalans are riding on luck. But Ernesto Valverde will sleep peacefully tonight knowing that his side managed a hard-fought 3-0 victory at the Butarque against Leganes.
Luis Suarez ended his goal drought with a rather fated brace and Paulinho sealed Leganes’ misery at the 90th minute after a scrappy spell in the box. The scoreline was rather a harsh reflection on Leganens’ performance, who were organised and compact at the back.
Here’s how the Barcelona players fared against Leganes:
Marc Andre Ter Stegen – 8
Ter Stegen has stepped into contention of being the best in the world and his performance in this game was not an exception. Made some fine saves and was confident on the ball.
Nelson Semedo – 6
Looked sharp in some moments of the match but needs to work on his defence to be at his best. Was replaced early in the second-half by Aleix Vidal.
Gerard Pique – 6
Picked up a stupid booking against Amrabat, which means he’ll miss the important match against Valencia. Apart from that, he was decent.
Samuel Umtiti – 7
Umtiti is, without a doubt, Barca’s best defender right now and was on hand today to stop counter-attacks. Impressed everyone with his performance.
Jordi Alba – 6
Was a key cog in maintaining intensity on the left flank. Didn’t have much to add otherwise though.
Sergio Busquets – 7
Another dominant display from one of the best defensive midfielders of our generation. From blocking counters and winning the ball back to channel passes and circulate possession, Busquets looked good on the ball.
Ivan Rakitic – 7
Had a surprisingly rare good game, although foolishly gave away the ball a couple of times.
Andres Iniesta – 6
Started looking sharper in the second-half but was replaced for Paulinho.
Paco Alcacer – 8
He is in great form at the moment. Had a huge contribution in both the goals, with Suarez merely feeding off on rebounds of shots originally struck by Alcacer.
Lionel Messi – 6
Wasn’t at his usual best today, but was involved in the second and third goals. Messi was heavily marked for most of the match in a subdued performance.
Luis Suárez – 8
No doubt the break over the last two weeks has done him all good. Two poacher’s goals.
Substitutes:
Aleix Vidal – 6
First appearance in over a month, returning from an ankle problem. Didn’t disappoint.
Paulinho – 7
Was in the right place at the right time again, scoring his 4th goal of the season.
Denis Suarez – 7
A late introduction, he added control to the midfield.
Twitter was active as always and here’s how the fans reacted to Barca’s win:
Forca barca good signs from Suarez still a bit to work on though but regardless 3 POINTS FOR US ON TO TURIN pic.twitter.com/aoCqeVlejw
— PPMBarca (@Peter10soccer) November 18, 2017
Paulinho and Messi’s chemistry on pitch has to be top 10 mysterious things to happen in world.
— RAHUL (@LionelCruyff) November 18, 2017
Ter Stegen will be finally recognized as a top five goalkeeper at the end of this season, no doubt.
— Rafael Hernández (@RafaelH117) November 18, 2017
Ter Stegen again. It says a lot when he and Umtiti are saving Barcelona every single week. Ter Stegen making a case for being one of the world’s best for a while now and Umtiti just continues to grow match after match.
— Roy Nemer (@RoyNemer) November 18, 2017
Denis did well in the time he was given. He is always like a spark that pumps life into the game. Deserves much more.
— BlaugranaHome (@BlaugranaHome) November 18, 2017
Shitty situation but honestly I’d rather have Pique suspended vs Valencia than Umtiti.
— XH6 (@XaviAssist) November 18, 2017
It hasn’t been pretty, but Barcelona are at the top of La Liga, most goals scored, least conceded, unbeaten, and 10 points ahead of Real Madrid. When it comes to results, it couldn’t be better.
The team can play a lot better, as we all know, but none expected it to be so well.
— Rafael Hernández (@RafaelH117) November 18, 2017