Leganes waited a long time, to be precise 88 years, to have their shot at the first division of Spanish football for the first time and the fans can hold their heads high despite the 1-5 loss to Barcelona on Saturday. Lionel Messi ran the show at Butarque Stadium on Saturday and scored the first goal ever at the newly built stadium. Messi scored a brace while Suarez and Neymar scored one each. Rafinha made it 5-0 in the 64th minute but a late sensational free kick from Gabriel Pires gave the hosts a much-deserved goal in the 80th minute.
Leganes put a strong fight against the La Liga holders but the quality of players like Messi, Suarez and Neymar was too much for them. Even though the hosts had 15 shots throughout the game, 5 more than Barca, the quality of the South American triumvirate ‘MSN’ helped the Blaugrana cruise to a win.
Here are the player ratings for Barcelona from the game.
Marc-Andre ter Stegen: 6.5/10
Did a decent job when he was called upon. Was beaten by Gabriel’s free-kick which was unstoppable.
Gerard Pique: 7.5/10
The Spaniard had a brilliant game. Won 3 headers and had as many as 98 touches of the ball, the most in the game. With 89.5% passing accuracy, Pique set the foundation of the team from the back in Busquets’ absence.
Javier Mascherano: 6.5/10
Was outpaced by Machis on every occasion. However, he was committed enough to deal with the dangers which was evident from his 5 tackles won in the game.
Samuel Umtiti: 6.5/10
Needs to improve his passing. 76.4% passing is not good enough for Barcelona. Was caught out of position twice but his pace bailed him out. 4 tackles, 2 clearances, 2 interceptions and 1 block- his defensive action was decent but the reason behind that is his poor passing.
Rafinha: 8/10
Started at the right of a midfield four and impressed. Capped his nice display with a goal. With 91.8% accurate passes, he made a strong impact when he was called upon by the manager.
Ivan Rakitic: 7/10
Sat deep and controlled the game. 88.5% of his passes were perfect. The Croat is the reason why Barcelona were successful in a 3-4-3 formation today.
Andres Iniesta: 6.5/10
The magical midfielder looked quite average against Leganes. Only 78.8% of his passes were successful which is a bit unusual for him.
Jordi Alba: 7/10
Alba looked a bit jaded today. Was less adventurous that his usual self.
Lionel Messi: 9/10
A brace and an assist, the Argentine magician once again stole the headlines. Four shots on target, one key pass, three dribbles and 83.8% passing accuracy, it was Messi who pulled the strings.
Luis Suarez: 9/10
The former Liverpool forward once again showed his class by tearing apart Leganes defence. Two assists and one goal, Suarez once again showed that he is the most complete striker in the world by a distance. Made as many as 3 key passes.
Neymar: 8/10
Was brought down time and time again by Leganes defenders. Netted an easy finish and earned a penalty.
Substitutes
Arda Turan: 5.5/10
Did not make much mark after coming on.
Denis Suarez: 6/10
Was neat with his passing after coming on.
Paco Alcacer: 5.5/10
Was not involved much in the game.
