Barcelona climbed to the top of the league after beating former leaders Sevilla 4-2 at the Camp Nou in what was an exciting game with many storylines. It was Barca's first league win in five attempts, as they had dropped nine points in the previous four games. The game ended Sevilla's four-match winning streak in the league.
Philippe Coutinho opened the scoring after a lovely team move and Lionel Messi soon doubled the lead with a sharp strike. Messi though was taken off after he suffered a serious arm injury in the first half which could affect Barcelona heavily in the coming weeks.
Luis Suarez earned and scored a penalty and Ivan Rakitic scored a sensational volley to secure the points for Barca. Luis Muriel and Pablo Sarabia got the goals for Sevilla, but they were nothing more than consolations. Most of the goals were a treat to watch, and so was the game in general.
Here are the major talking points from the game.
#5 Coutinho cementing his spot in the front three
Ernesto Valverde started the season with a front three of Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, and Ousmane Dembele as Philippe Coutinho lined up in the midfield trio.
But recently Coutinho has been pushed further forward, and his compatriot Arthur Melo has started in midfield. This gives more balance in midfield for the pragmatic Valverde, as Arthur is more of an orthodox midfielder than Coutinho.
Coutinho has developed good chemistry with Messi and Suarez, and that was evident when he scored the first goal against Sevilla. His dribbling and shooting are put to better use in this position, and he is definitely making the most of it. Whether Messi's injury will alter the same remains to be seen.
#4 LaLiga is competitive like never before
Barcelona are the league leaders as of now, but the crowd beneath them are ridiculously close together in terms of points. Barca has 18 points, followed by Alaves with 17 points, followed by Sevilla and Atletico Madrid with 16, and then Real Madrid and Espanyol with 14.
The teams below these are very close as well, as Spain is witnessing one of the most competitive domestic seasons in recent history. The general consensus about LaLiga is that Barcelona and Real Madrid dominate it, but the script is definitely different this time.
Not one side has put in consistent performances, which has resulted in the contenders being close in terms of points. The league table suggests some exciting times for the neutral fans, as nothing seems to be taken for granted this season.
#3 Sevilla attack fails to get into gear for once
Going into the weekend, only Barcelona had scored more than Sevilla's 18 goals. Behind them were Real Madrid and Levante with a measly 12.
Andre Silva has led the charge for Sevilla this season, and his tally of 7 goals has been bettered by only Cristhian Stuani. Along with Wissam Ben Yedder, Sevilla has a potent duo and the rest of their attacking players have been on song as well.
Sevilla scored two goals, but their attack was far from its best. They couldn't get into a rhythm against Barca, lacking the final pass each time. They took a lot of shots, 19 to be exact, but failed to make a dent until it was too late. Pablo Machin will hope this game was just a blip rather than anything more.
#2 Marc-Andre ter Stegen is in the form of his life
Marc-Andre ter Stegen, or MAtS as they call him, is an unbelievable goalkeeper.
Against Sevilla, he was at his imperious best, producing fabulous saves to preserve the lead for his side. The two goals conceded should not be a blot on his performance, as he did not have any chance of saving both the strikes.
He produced a sensational double save on the hour mark, saving Silva's header before spreading himself to smother Vasquez's rebound. The German conjured up a similar sequence late on, which was arguably better than the first one. His distribution was impeccable as usual, and so was his positioning.
The likes of Jan Oblak and David De Gea will stake their claim for being the best between the sticks, but ter Stegen might be sneaking towards that crown.
#1 Messi is the heartbeat of this Barca side, and it was painfully obvious
Lionel Messi conjured up one goal and then scored another inside 12 minutes before he suffered a shoulder injury. The pain meant that he was unable to continue, and his mesmeric presence eluded us for the rest of the game.
Barca's swagger went off the pitch with Messi, and a different side emerged. The possession went from 68% with Messi on the pitch to 48% without him. Sevilla came into the game more and started creating chances,
The Catalans managed to hold them off, but the change in the game's pattern after Messi's withdrawal was painfully obvious for Valverde. His side play Inter in midweek and they will face Real Madrid in the Clasico on Sunday. Messi's involvement is likely to be marginal this week, and it will be intriguing to see how Barcelona deal with it.