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Goals: Philippe Coutinho 11'; Paulinho 16'; Lionel Messi 45'; Nicola Sansone 54'; Ousmane Dembele 87', 90+3'
La Liga Champions Barcelona welcomed Villarreal to the Camp Nou as they intended to keep their undefeated league record intact.
The Yellow submarines, on the other hand, are looking to qualify for the Europa League. A win at the Camp Nou would seal them a place in the European competition.
Ernesto Valverde has made a plethora of changes to his side for the mid-week home game. Luis Suarez and Jordi Alba were among those rested for the clash.
There were quite a few changes in the traveling side as well. Pablo Fornals and Jaume Costa were handed a start.
Without much ado, let’s take a look at the key talking points from the game.
#5 It was all Barcelona in the first 30 minutes
Barcelona dominated the game and the possession in the first 30 minutes. At the half-hour mark, the home team had 78% of possession compared to the visitors 28%.
They also scored twice within the first 16 minutes.
Philippe Coutinho made it 1-0 in the 11th minute. He scored from close range after Sergio Asenjo failed to hold onto Ousmane Dembele’s long-range effort.
Barcelona doubled the lead within the next five minutes.
Handed a rare start, Paulinho made it 2-0 in the 16th minute. Iniesta was the architect as he threaded a lovely through-ball to Lucas Digne.
The left-back found Paulinho in front of goal and the Brazilian slotted it into the right corner.
#4 Villarreal’s poor record at the Camp Nou continues
Camp Nou is a not a place for any visiting teams and Villarreal, in particular, has a torrid record playing at Barcelona’s home.
They have kept only one clean sheet in their previous 18 visits to Barcelona. Also, they were able to beat Barcelona only once in the last 14 years at the Camp Nou.
The Catalan giants haven’t lost a competitive game to Villarreal in the last 10 years and have won the last six games at the Camp Nou.
They did not do anything better this time as they surrendered to Barcelona once again at the Camp Nou. They could only put up a little fight against a rampant Barcelona side. Eventually, they lost the game 5-1.
#3 Villarreal played a lot better in the second half and scored a freaky goal
After a dormant first half, the Yellow submarines sprung to life in the second half. They started well and scored within the 10 minutes after the restart.
Nicola Sansone pulled one back for Villarreal with a freak goal. Pablo Fornals’s shot on goal struck Nicola Sansone and deflected into the goal.
Fornals came close in the 63rd minute but his effort flew just wide. Sansone came close to making it 3-2, but his effort flew inches over the crossbar.
The Yellow Submarines were unlucky not to score in the 83rd minute as Rodri’s thunderous strike looked a certain goal but it struck Sansone and went out for a goal-kick.
A spirited second-half display could not save the Yellow Submarines.
#2 Iniesta impressive and two late goals from Dembele ensured a comfortable win for Barcelona
Andres Iniesta was once again brilliant for Barcelona and had the game under his control in the first half. He was brilliant with the ball and dictated the game.
He masterminded the second and third goal for Barcelona.
One other player who deserves a mention here is Ousmane Dembele. The French international was given a start by Ernesto Valverde and he did not disappoint the manager with his first brace in Barcelona colors.
He created Coutinho’s goal early in the game and was threatening throughout the night with his pace on the flanks.
He grabbed a brace late in the game to cap his fine display. He scored his first from a close-range effort and his second was a brilliant solo goal.
He picked up the ball near the center circle and went 50 yards to chip it over Asenjo. With a lot more game time next season, he could do wonders for Barcelona.
#1 The Catalan giants are just two games away from being the ‘Invincibles’
The Blaugrana are now 43 games unbeaten in La Liga, a run that started last season. Only Arsenal and Juventus have remained unbeaten for a whole 20-team season in club football history. The Catalan giants are just days away from rewriting the history books.
They have two more league games remaining in the 2017/18 La Liga season and if they manage to avoid defeat against Levante and Real Sociedad, they will join a very short list of elite clubs.
Also, they will become the first team in La Liga history to remain unbeaten in a whole 20-team season.
After a disappointing European season, Valverde would look to finish the domestic season on a high and earn the prestigious tag, ‘Invincibles’.
