'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Barcelona’s unbeaten record in La Liga remained intact as they drew 1-1 with Espanyol in a feisty derby affair.
Lionel Messi was rested and started on the bench, but they clearly missed their star player from the off. Phillipe Coutinho would strike the crossbar early in the first half, but that was the only real opportunity of the opening 45 minutes.
In the second half, Espanyol grew in confidence and even took the lead through Gerard, when he headed substitute Sergio Garcia’s cross past Marc-Andre ter Stegen.
But Gerard Pique was on hand to make sure Barcelona remained the only side in Europe to have no league defeats when he headed in the equaliser and Barcelona’s 17th goal in the final 10 minutes of a match this season.
Here are the player ratings from the match:
Espanyol
Diego Lopez – 6
Lopez was mainly untroubled all evening and did a solid job for the most part. He was lucky not to see Coutinho’s strike fly past him in the first half, but he had very few saves to make. Unfortunately, he could do nothing about a close-range Pique header which gave Barcelona their equaliser.
Marc Navarro – 7
Navarro did very well to give Digne such little space and constantly forced him backwards or sideways. It was an admirable performance from the 23-year-old who was later replaced by Javi Lopez.
David Lopez – 7
The centre-back put in a great performance to limit Barcelona’s creative front line. His defending and reading of the play was excellent, it made sure that Barcelona would not score from open play.
Naldo – 7
Alongside Lopez, Naldo also put in a fantastic defensive shift. Although he would not keep out Barcelona completely and keep a clean sheet, the tackles and interceptions he put in were crucial in making sure they only scored once.
Aaron Martin – 6
Martin, like Navarro on the opposite side, put in a great defensive performance. He did very well in dealing with the pacey and intelligent Semedo and cutting out his crosses.
Victor Sanchez – 6
The midfielder worked hard and pressed the Barcelona midfield very well, giving them very little chance to build up play quickly.
Sergi Darder – 6
He did not get the chance to play with the ball as much as he would have liked, but against Barcelona, it is more about the defensive work and he did that well. And even with a few opportunities, he did get the ball forward well.
Leo Baptistao – 7
Working with scraps but having Espanyol’s best chances, working extremely hard.
Esteban Granero – 6
Granero was caught up in an argument with some Barcelona players towards the end as things got heated, but he can be proud of his defensive work rate, helping out his full-back Martin very well.
Jose Manuel Jurado – 6
Jurado saw little of the ball all evening and was substituted for Garcia, but his defensive work should be appreciated, as he helped young Navarro nullify Digne’s threat down the left-hand side.
Gerard – 7
Showed some signs of promise, but was forced to mainly defend in the first half. In the second half, he saw a bit more of the ball and took advantage of his one chance, nodding past ter Stegen to give his side the lead.
Substitutions:
Sergio Garcia – 7
Off the bench he made a massive impact after five minutes, picking out Gerard for the opening goal.
Javi Lopez – N/A
Lopez played for the final 14 minutes, but it was mainly about him keeping shape and defending against Barcelona’s substitute Jordi Alba.
Carlos Sanchez – N/A
Sanchez played the final four minutes of normal time plus stoppage time and was mainly there as an extra body to defend in midfield.
Barcelona
Marc-Andre ter Stegen – 6
As usual, ter Stegen stayed calm and collected on the ball, and had nothing to do in terms of difficult efforts to save in the first half. In the second half, Espanyol had more chances, which he dealt with, he was just unlucky with the goal as he got a hand to it, but it was ultimately just a little too close to him to keep out.
Nelson Semedo – 5
Showed energy and eagerness to get in behind but his crossing was very poor. He played 13 minutes of the second half with very little attacking threat and was taken off for Roberto.
Gerard Pique – 6
He found himself on the wrong side of Baptistao on a couple of occasions causing him to commit fouls. Then in the second half, he threw a wild leg at Garcia’s cross instead of heading it and it led to Gerard’s goal. But, he would make up for it with a brilliant late header, similarly to how Sergio Ramos has done for Madrid in recent seasons.
Samuel Umtiti – 7
Umtiti put in another very solid performance, showing how comfortable he is in possession, along with making a few very good tackles to break up play.
Lucas Digne – 6
Digne defended well and limited Jurado to no chances all evening, but going forward he struggled. Navarro put in an extremely solid performance and it made it difficult for him to get in behind or get any crosses in.
Phillipe Coutinho – 7
The Brazilian rattled the crossbar with a classic Coutinho effort from outside the box which would have been a wonderful first goal for Barcelona, but it just wasn’t to be. However, apart from that, he was pretty quiet until he moved centrally in the final 15 minutes, where he began to flourish.
Paulinho – 5
Paulinho had a very tough time, failing to make any late runs due to the watery surface which was making things difficult, and he was rather poor in possession, failing to advance forward much.
Sergio Busquets – 5
Busquets had a difficult day being pressed in midfield and found it hard to move the ball forward. He was also booked and found it difficult to break up play.
Andres Iniesta – 5
Iniesta, surprisingly, was dispossessed on quite a few occasions and struggled to make much of an impact at all. It was potentially due to him playing deeper than usual and the absence of Messi, but it was far from one of his better days.
Paco Alcacer – 6
Alcacer, with a rare start, was rather quiet. He showed some signs of some good link-up play with Paulinho and Suarez at times but he just didn’t see enough of the ball.
Luis Suarez – 6
Suarez was the player who was mainly trying to create something, linking up with Coutinho well at times and having a couple of shots, but the very wet surface was proving a problem for Barcelona when they tried to play fast-paced football.
Substitutions:
Sergi Roberto – 6
Roberto was energetic and tried to work the ball forward as much as possible from the bench. It was a pretty good cameo from the Spaniard.
Lionel Messi – 7
Messi was struggling to find his feet in the game off the bench, all until his superb delivery was headed in by Pique to make it 1-1, showing the difference he can make in an instant. He then went on to show off with some fabulous dribbles but he just wasn’t able to create or score a winner.
Jordi Alba – N/A
Alba played for the final 15 minutes and had a bit more of an impact going forward than Digne, but it wasn’t long enough.
