Barcelona played hosts to Leganes at the Nou Camp on Saturday night looking to consolidate their position at the top of the La Liga table. Ernesto Valverde opted for his favoured 4-2-3-1 formation and his team began the match on the front foot. The Catalans found the breakthrough in the 27th minute through Lionel Messi’s goal. The Argentine doubled his team’s lead just five minutes later courtesy of a clever finish from inside the Leganes box.
The away team came back into the contest in the second half after Nabil El Zhar scored in the 68th minute. However, Messi scored once again to grab his hattrick in the 87th minute and help the Catalans to a 3-1 victory on the night.
Let’s shed some light on how each Barcelona player fared during the contest.
GK: Marc-André ter Stegen – 6/10
He hardly had anything to do in the match but did the basic things well when called into action.
RB: Nelson Cabral Semedo – 7/10
His pace down the right flank was an asset for the Barca team.
CB: Gerard Piqué – 6/10
The Spanish defender missed a great chance to get his name on the scoresheet. He coped well defensively to see out the three points on the night.
CB: Thomas Vermaelen – 6/10
He looked composed on the ball and was solid at the heart of the Catalans defence.
LB: Sergi Roberto – 7/10
He put in an impressive display as a makeshift left-back for the home team.
CM: Ivan Rakitic – 7/10
The Croatian pulled the strings in midfield and had a good game.
CM: André Gomes – 6.5/10
He slotted in well alongside Rakitic at the centre of the park and maintained Barca’s dominance all throughout the contest.
RM: Ousmane Dembélé – 6/10
He was lively down the right flank but his final decision-making left a lot to be desired.
CAM: Lionel Messi – 10/10
The Argentine superstar scored a hattrick to help Barca secure a 3-1 victory and get one step closer towards the La Liga title.
LM: Philippe Coutinho – 8/10
The Brazilian set up Messi’s second goal with a clever pass and caused a lot of problems for the Leganes defence.
ST: Luis Suárez – 6/10
He squandered a few chances and was unlucky not to score on the night.
Substitutes:
LB: Jordi Alba – 6/10
He came off the bench to see out the victory for the home side.
LM: Andres Iniesta – N/A
He hardly had any time to make an impact.
RM: Denis Suarez – N/A
He was brought off the bench to run the clock down.
