Barcelona entertained Elche at the Nou Camp earlier today as they looked to collect all three points at home. The Catalans made a bright start to the game and got their noses ahead in the 16th minute courtesy of Ferran Jutlgà’s excellent header. Gavi doubled Barca’s advantage just three minutes later when he found the back of the net from the edge of the Elche penalty box. The home team went into the half-time interval 2-0 up on the scoreline.
The visitors scored two quick-fire goals after the hour mark as both Tete Morente and Pere Milla got their names on the scoresheet. However, Nico Gonzalez went on to score the winning goal for Barca in the 85th minute as the contest ended 3-2 in favour of Xavi’s men.
Let’s take a look at how each Barcelona player performed during the clash against Elche.
GK: Marc-André ter Stegen – 6/10
The German shot-stopper made just one save in the game but won’t be pleased after shipping in two goals in the second half.
CB: Clement Lenglet – 7/10
Lenglet was strong in the air and made some solid tackles at the back. He even picked up an assist for setting up Gavi’s goal.
CB: Eric Garcia – 6.5/10
The Spanish centre-back made a few solid interceptions inside his half and was quite neat with his passing.
CB: Ronald Araujo – 6.5/10
He got stuck in with a few tackles and made two good runs with the ball from the back.
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CM: Sergio Busquets – 6/10
Busquets tried his best to offer some protection for his teammates at the back but struggled to make an impact in the Elche half.
CM: Frenkie de Jong – 6/10
He had a couple of bright moments but offered very little in the final third.
CM: Jordi Alba – 6.5/10
The Spaniard did his fair share of defending and orchestrated a couple of decent chances in the attacking end of the field.
CAM: Gavi – 8.5/10
The Spanish playmaker scored an excellent goal in the 19th minute to put Barca in a commanding position in the game. He has even got an assist to show for his efforts.
RW: Ousmane Dembele – 8/10
The French wing wizard caused a lot of problems for the Elche defenders because of his creativity and running. Xavi would be hoping for more of the same from him in the coming weeks.
ST: Ferran Jutlgà – 7.5/10
The young attacker opened the goal-scoring with a great header. He was not shy of having a strike at goal.
LW: Abde Ezzalzouli – 8/10
Ezzalzouli completed a lot of eye-catching runs with the ball and made two good opportunities for his teammates to score. However, there was no goal for him today.
Substitutes:
ST: Nico Gonzalez – 7.5/10
He was quite lively after coming off the bench and scored the winning goal for Barca in the 85th minute.
CM: Riqui Puig – 6/10
The Spanish talent struggled to get into the rhythm of the game.
LB: Alejandro Balde – N/A
Balde didn’t get enough minutes to warrant a rating.
