FC Barcelona continued their emphatic return to form by completing a 6-0 rout of relegation contenders Sporting Gijon at the Camp Nou to regain pole position in the race for the Spanish title.
Both teams entered the game with similar agendas at opposite ends of the table. Barcelona needed a win as title challengers Atletico and Real Madrid both won their fixtures on the weekend. The loss, being Gijon’s second in the past six games, leaves them stuck in the danger zone.
Also read: Luis Suarez is the first player in history to score four goals in two consecutive La Liga games
The Blaugrana’s in-form striker Luis Suarez fired in four goals to overtake Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo in the race for the Pichichi award, taking his tally to 34 league goals for the season.
Here are five talking points from the game:
A tale of two halves
Sporting Gijon arrived at the Camp Nou in desperate need of points. The side had no intentions of hoisting the white flag in Catalonia, and they made this very clear with a good performance in the first half.
Despite going a goal down, Abelardo Fernandez’s men put up a good fight, creating chances of their own early on with Miguel Guerrero creating trouble in the box just to see teammate Alex Mendez’s tame attempt saved by Claudio Bravo.
The Gijon defence stayed compact and played deep, absorbing quite a bit of pressure from Barcelona’s front three. A single goal from Lionel Messi was all that separated the two sides at halftime.
As soon as the second half began, Messi ripped through the Gijon defence time and again, leaving a trail of utter panic behind him. It didn’t take the Catalans long to double their lead, with Messi initiating the move which led to the goal by Suarez. Before they knew it, the Asturians were on the ropes as Luis Enrique’s men switched gears and dictated the tempo of the game.
Stellar Suarez strikes again
Barcelona’s attacking spearhead Luis Suarez has now found the back of the net eight times in the past three days. Suarez regained his lost form during the week as he struck four times in the 8-0 demolition of Deportivo and he showed no signs of slowing down as he scored twice from the spot and bagged a couple of neatly finished goals to his name, taking his tally to 34 league goals and 53 goals in all competitions.
With his four-goal hauls against Deportivo La Coruna and Sporting Gijon, the Uruguayan has become the first player in La Liga to score four times in two consecutive matches. The ex-Liverpool man has also overtaken Cristiano Ronaldo in the race for the Pichichi award.
Suarez terrorised the Gijon back-four as he seemed to be in the right place at the right time without being noticed.
Substitutions and discipline
Sporting Gijons’s gaffer Abelardo Fernandez made three substitutions in the second half. Two of his substitutes conceded penalties soon after coming on which essentially put the match way beyond Gijon’s reach.
Fernandez brought in Roberto Canella for Ismael Lopez and in just three minutes, he gave away a penalty as he handled the ball inside the box. While Antonio Sanabria, who came on for Pablo Perez in the 62nd minute and conceded a penalty less than ten minutes later as he appeared to have brought down Neymar in the box.
Three of Barcelona’s six goals were penalties and this clearly tells us something about the discipline. Full-back Ognjen Vranjes received his second yellow card and was sent off for a nudge into Neymar’s back, resulting in the third penalty of the game.
Losing key players due to suspension at such a crucial point of time in the league can affect Gijon’s chances of survival in the top tier.
Messi takes control
After taking some serious knocks at the Riazor during the week, Lionel Messi managed to bring his best game to the Camp Nou on the day as he terrorised the Gijon defence with his sublime passes and dribbles.
Messi opened the scoring with a looping header from just inside the box after Gijon keeper Ivan Cuellar failed to clear Iniesta’s ball into the box. The Argentine switched roles with Iniesta during the game as he initiated the move which led to the second goal of the game.
Messi then helped Luis Suarez score his fourth of the game with an assist. The multiple Ballon d’Or winner was lively throughout the ninety minutes and was at the centre of action every now and then.
Contrasting victories for the top three sides
Both Real and Atletico Madrid enjoyed brief spells at the top of the table before Barcelona’s game. The Madrid sides endured stiff competition as their opposition put on a tough fight.
Real Madrid went 2-0 down to Rayo Vallecano before fighting their way back to earn all three points, thanks to two goals from Gareth Bale and one from Lucas Vazquez while Atletico Madrid made it 5 successive wins in all competitions with a 1-0 win over 10th placed Malaga.
With none of the top three sides dropping points, the title race is still open. Barcelona are ahead of Atleti on head to head record while Real are lurking just one point adrift. A slip-up from any of the three sides can lead to an interesting twist in this intense race for Spanish glory.
