Barcelona 2-0 Inter Milan: 5 Hits and Flops

Alba (center) celebrates his finish with Arturo Vidal and Philippe Coutinho as Barcelona seal all three points
Alba (center) celebrates his finish with Arturo Vidal and Philippe Coutinho as Barcelona seal all three points

#3 Flop: Mauro Icardi

Icardi was effectively kept at bay by Lenglet and Pique and struggled to create anything of note
Icardi was effectively kept at bay by Lenglet and Pique and struggled to create anything of note

Yes, you read that right. Fresh from scoring a late winner in the Milan derby on Sunday, the Argentine forward appeared anything but that on this occasion. Lethargic with his movement and rarely threatening, he was effectively isolated by an inspired Clement Lenglet display alongside the experienced Gerard Pique.

Admittedly, the service into his path was infrequent to say the least. Borja Valero and Antonio Candreva were both ineffective - while Ivan Perisic (thigh) was bright early on but faded, which is to be expected given he's not 100% fit.

Lenglet's timely interception ensured Icardi didn't get a shot away midway through the first-half from Perisic's inviting delivery, but other than that? Not much of note from Mauro here, which is underwhelming given how much hype has surrounded the 25-year-old in recent seasons.

He won a joint-high four aerial duels during the 90 minutes, which shouldn't come as a surprise - but only had 24 touches and was wasteful in possession when he had it. Frustrating display.

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