Barcelona came back from the dead to record a 4-2 win over Eibar at Camp Nou but it wasn’t enough to prevent Real Madrid from winning their first La Liga title since 2011/12, after Zinedine Zidane’s side beat Malaga 2-0.
Takashi Inui struck twice for the away side who, against all odds, took a 2-0 lead against the team that finished 2nd in the league. An own goal benefitted the home side before a tap in from Luis Suarez and a brace from Lionel Messi helped Luis Enrique’s side end the league campaign on a high.
Here are the talking points from the game:
Where is the Luis Suarez of 2015/16
Luis Suarez during the 2015/16 season was without doubt the most lethal striker on the planet. However, the Uruguayan striker who lined up for Barcelona against Eibar, and for most of this season, is a shadow of the phenomenon who scored 59 goals across all competitions last season.
Yes, he still as managed to score 37 goals this season, 29 of them in the league also, still unbelievable numbers for any striker but it is the manner in which they have come that raise the biggest question – where is the Luis Suarez of last season.
A closer look at his goalscoring record and you will see that apart from his goals against Sevilla and Real Madrid – in the first half of the season – and against Real Betis, Deportivo La Coruna and Espanyol, in the second, most of his goals have come in routs, or in games that the Catalan giants were winning comfortably.
He did tap the ball home to equalise for the Catalan giants but he missed as many as three one-on-one chances against Yoel – highlighting the lack of confidence that he currently has in his goalscoring abilities. On more occasions than one, especially the big games, Suarez has missed countless chances, which has proved costly for the team and was one of the main reasons why Barcelona couldn’t get their hands on the La Liga title.
The only reason why there was a title race and that Barcelona were still in it going into the last game of the season was the brilliance of Lionel Messi, who on numerous occasions this season proved that he is on different level altogether compared to his teammates.
His heroics might not have been enough to help his team win a straight consecutive league title but he did end the league campaign in style as he scored a magical solo goal in the added time of the game, to silence his critics after he had missed a chance from a few yards out and saw one of his penalties being saved by Yoel.
Messi’s moments of magic!
Eibar have done remarkably well to finish 10th this season
For a club with a shoe-string budget like Eibar, to finish 10th in the league is no mean feat. Add to that, the fact, that it is only their 3rd season in the top-flight and it only adds to their incredible story.
Los Armeros were relegated in their first top-flight season in 2014/15 and it was only because of the financial mismanagement by Elche – which accrued a punishment of relegation – that the Ipura Municipal Stadium were reinstated to play in La Liga the following season.
From being 18th in the league in 2014/15 to finishing 10th in 2016/17 – 8 points ahead of 11th placed Malaga, doesn’t do justice to how awe-inspiring the journey has been for Eibar, and that too with their extremely limited funds.
Of all the talks of referees going into Malaga vs Real Madrid, the refereeing here was shambolic at times
All the pre-match focus going into the final weekend of La Liga was how referees can play a big part in the outcome of the game at La Rosadela, where Real Madrid just needed a points against Malaga to win their first title since 2011/12. However, it was the shambolic refereeing in the game between Barcelona and Eibar that was probably one of the highlights of the night.
Barcelona were awarded 2 penalties in the second half of the match, first when they were 2-1 but Messi’s spot-kick was saved by Yoel – which can only be termed as poetic justice - and then when they were on level terms as Messi successfully converted from the spot in the second attempt.
The referee, Alejandro Jose Hernandez, bizarrely pointed to the spot in the 69th minute when Jordi Alba flung himself to the ground inside the Eibar box after kicking at the ground instead of the ball with no opposition player in a 2 metre radius of him. It was a blatant dive and justice was served when Yoel saved Messi’s drilled penalty.
Only 5 minutes later, the referee pointed to the spot, once again, this time for a foul by Capa on Neymar – a rather soft call to be honest – before giving the defender his marching orders for his second bookable offence of the night. Messi stepped up and made no mistake as he gave Barcelona the lead for the first time on the night.
The Alba incident...
Takashi Inui becomes first Japanese to score against Barcelona in La Liga history
Takashi Inui scored two good goals last night – both went in after grazing the crossbar, both were excellent goals and helped Eibar take a 2-0 lead over the Catalan giants. However, the two goals were special for many reasons.
The first goal made Inui the first Japanese player ever to score against Barcelona in La Liga, while his two goals were the second and third goals that Eibar have ever scored against the Blaugrana in the league, having faced them only 6 times in the top-flight.
Both the strikes were remarkable in both technique and audacity. The first one a half-volley from some way out, while the second one an unstoppable drive again from near the edge of the box. Eibar may have lost the game but Inui did give an excellent account of himself to the 100,000 or so present at Camp Nou.
Why Barcelona lost the title – not doing the job against the small teams
Real Madrid have had a very clear plan this season, rest and preserve Cristiano Ronaldo for the big games while getting the job done without their superstars against smaller teams. And it worked out very well for them, given that they lifted their first league title since 2011-12, their 33rd overall.
A quick look at Barcelona’s results this season and some games stand out. Celta Vigo 4-3 Barcelona, Barcelona 0-0 Malaga, Real Betis 1-1 Barcelona, Deportivo la Coruna 2-1 Barcelona and Malaga 2-0 Barcelona - all games in which Luis Enrique’s side dropped points against teams in the bottom half of the table.
Madrid, on the other hand, dropped points against teams in the bottom half of the table on only 3 occasions, the two draws against Las Palmas and the 2-1 defeat against Valencia. They dropped only 7 points as against to the 13 dropped by Barcelona, and this played a pivotal role in where the title finally ended up being at.
Madrid didn’t go for the jugular against the smaller teams, at least not always and were happy to grind out wins with margins of one or two goals. Barcelona, on the other hand, missed a trick as they were often exposed and outscored by these teams with their frail defence was put to the sword. It is in these games that Los Blancos won the title and the Blaugrana lost it.
Also Read: Twitter explodes as Lionel Messi's heroics go in vain as Barcelona lose title to Real Madrid
