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1st placed Barcelona went to the 8th placed Alaves with the ambition of getting closer to the title. The Catalunya side were 9 points clear off the 2nd placed Atletico Madrid before the match and a win would see them on top with 12 points clear off of second place and an extra game played. Barcelona certainly hoping to gain maximum points out of this fixture, also saw it as an opportunity to rest some important players such as Messi, Rakitic, Arthur Melo, and Jordi Alba as many important fixtures including the tie with Liverpool in the UEFA Champions League are forthcoming.
The playing eleven still had a real strength with Coutinho, Suarez and Dembele on the attack which looked promising enough to get the party going with some fireworks. Coutinho was below par throughout the game and so was Dembele. Even though the French international showed some glittery skills and nutmegs and some amazing runs, he wasn't particularly adding to the attack. He was later replaced by Messi in the second half. Suarez, on the other hand, was getting involved in the game and maintaining his timed runs through the Alaves defence.
The midfield comprised of Alena, Busquets and Vidal where Busquets was playing deep with the defence, Vidal had a bit of freedom and was seen tracking back as well as joining the attack at times. Alena was creating the key passes and was moving the ball all around.
The back line, Semedo, Umtiti, Pique, and Sergi Roberto did their job perfectly and in harmony stopping all the adequate attacks and possible chances.
Here are 3 players who won the game for Barcelona:
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#3 Pique
Pique was great defensively in today's game, blocking most of the shots while cutting off the attacks. Alaves came very close to scoring a goal in the second half, only for Pique to clear off the loose ball, saving a goal, which was ready to be hit by the Alaves attacker.
Pique's heroics in defence is something which is greatly known in the footballing world and even more so by the Barcelona fans. All of it was on display today along with his calm and composed head which made the passing in Barcelona's own penalty area quite easy and pleasing to the eye without a real hint of pressure. His partnership with Umtiti also received praise from the media and critics after the game as they managed to keep Alaves silent by allowing them just 1 shot on target, achieving a clean sheet.
Pique almost scored a goal which was later disallowed for offside only to discover it came off a hand of the Alaves defender and was deemed as a penalty via VAR.
#2 Luis Suarez
Luis Suarez was a peripheral figure for the team today. He helped the attack with his well-timed runs, quick thinking and a penalty. He started the game and got involved since the first touch, coming deep near the centre-circle to move the ball and stitch passes around. He made many darting runs towards the goal hoping for one successful long pass throughout the game but wasn't successful in that. His movement was brilliant as was his match awareness.
Suarez was involved in both the goals as he played a dummy during the first one, fooling the defenders around him which created ample space for Alena to take his time and place the ball into the corner. That dummy move was one for the books and was a real stroke of genius from the Uruguayan
Suarez later struck home the penalty which was awarded as the Alaves defender was caught handling the ball from an Ousmane Dembele corner. The penalty wasn't the greatest as it touched the tip of the goalkeeper and narrowly escaped from the side settling into the right-hand corner.
Suarez has been an important figure for the club throughout these years and performances like these is what keeps everyone at the club going.
#1 Carles Alena
Carles Alena was undoubtedly the man of the match as he scored the opener and was instrumental in the build-up play. He played maturely, showed his class and proved everyone why he deserves a place amongst Busquets, Arthur Melo, and Rakitic, the star-studded Barcelona midfield.
Alena finished off a wonderful move created by Sergi Roberto who dribbled the ball from the right-hand side, piercing into the midfield of Alaves beating 4 players in the run. Roberto then laid off a pass in the direction of Luis Suarez who was waiting on the line of the Alaves penalty box. Suarez did a dummy-move on the ball leaving it for the forthcoming Alena who controlled the ball perfectly and tucked it into the left-hand corner making it 0-1 for the visitors.
This was one of Alena's best performances in a Barcelona shirt as he stood out amongst all the stars on the field. He has shown continuous signs of positive growth, and being a product of the academy, he is already equipped with the Barcelona style of play and mentality.
Alena's future at the club seems secure and if he continues to pull off performances of this quality in every match week, then he will be a player to watch out for.
