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Barcelona took Sevilla to the cleaners as they put four past them in a game that at first seemed like it could swing in either side's favor.
Although Ernesto Valverde's side began the game on the front foot, Sevilla were the ones who fashioned the best of chances - namely three of them. Luuk de Jong came close to scoring not once but twice, but his fluffed efforts allowed the home side to enter the game.
In the space of eight minutes, the Blaugrana showed how it's done in front of goal by dispatching three past the keeper. Luis Suarez broke the deadlock with a sensational overhead kick, before Arturo Vidal and Ousmane Dembele displayed their acumen in the final third and put the result beyond doubt.
Lionel Messi, who had a couple of strong efforts from free-kicks, saw his shots repeatedly go whistling over the bar. However, he did notch a dead ball into the back of the net in the 78th minute in gorgeous fashion, leaving Julen Lopetegui's troops lurching.
Barcelona's triumph, however, came at the expense of three suspensions, with the champions seeing off the 90 minutes with nine men. Dembele and debutant Ronald Araujo were given the marching orders in the dying stages, while another yellow card for Gerard Pique means he will not be available for the next fixture against Eibar.
The hosts were far from their best in the opening stages of the game, but kept their heads and illustrated how clinical they can be in front of goal. They could well have been two or even three down before Suarez's eye-catching bicycle kick, but it was not to be for Sevilla.
Having kicked the season off with an impressive 10 points from their opening four LaLiga games, Sevilla are now stumbling with just one win from their last four.
On that note, let us look at five players who rose to the occasion for Barcelona.
#5 Marc-Andre ter Stegen
Despite enduring a fruitless initial period, Barcelona did well to dig in and keep themselves in the game. And one man who helped them do that was Marc-Andre ter Stegen.
The German was peerless in goal, distributing the ball well and completing all the routine stops one would expect him to make. But one save off Luuk de Jong left many a jaw on the floor.
Defying the laws of physics, the shot-stopper got down to his left brilliantly and smothered the ball away. It was the spark that Barcelona needed to go on their goal-scoring spree.
#4 Lionel Messi
Lionel Messi scored his first of the season, as you'd expect him to against a side he loves to punish. The Barcelona skipper has now netted 23 goals and added 14 more assists in his last 21 outings against Sevilla.
With Sevilla starting brightly and most of Barcelona's attacking play being recycled on the left-hand side, Messi was frozen out of the action to a certain extent, at least by his otherworldly standards.
However, it takes just a moment for the mercurial magician to get into the game. After seeing a couple of efforts fizz over the cross bar and the product of a mazy run saved by the fingertips of Tomas Vaclik, Messi got his goal in the 78th minute to rub salt in Sevilla's wounds.
It is very difficult to get the ball over the bar with the right trajectory and dip, and make it land in the top corner from 25 yards. But Messi designs it to look easy.
Barcelona now have four consecutive victories under their belt, and it's only going to get better with their talisman's return.
#3 Luis Suarez
Luis Suarez replicated his European scoring spree on the domestic stage, firing Barcelona ahead in difficult circumstances.
When Sevilla were looking ambitious and fluent, the hosts needed something inspirational to get a foothold in the match. And who else but a striker of Suarez's pedigree to provide the breakthrough against the run of play?
Credit Nelson Semedo for the run, as he charged down the left and picked the number 9 accurately, but the ball was just behind the Uruguayan's reach. However, he did ever so well to adjust himself, apply the brakes and then launch the bicycle under pressure. And boy, was the finish exquisite.
Throughout the course of the fixture, Suarez remained a threat with his smart runs down the channel. Often, his runs also brought the likes of Arthur and Arturo Vidal into play, as the space just outside the 18-yard box would be unlocked.
It was not a game where Suarez threatened to score half a dozen times, but it was a solid all-round display nonetheless.
#2 Arthur Melo
"We started the game very well but once we went behind it was very difficult for us. We had so many chances to score, but if you switch off for one second at the Camp Nou you get punished," said Sevilla's Fernando, who himself missed a glorious chance of handing his side the advantage in the first half.
The central midfielder was spot on with his assessment. And one man who helped make Sevilla pay for their lapses time and again was Arthur Melo.
As always, the youngster was perfectly positioned throughout the game. He churned passes out to all parts of the pitch effortlessly, kept the flow of proceedings intact and broke down the opponents' play whenever required.
He displayed tremendous poise and composure throughout the game. Players sometimes panic from the areas he manned, but Arthur was composed with the ball and intelligent enough to pick a pass.
The way he picked out Arturo Vidal, all so comfortably, stands testimony to that.
#1 Nelson Semedo
Each of Barcelona's front three wrote his name on the score sheet, and in imperious fashion. While Ousmane Dembele forged an attractive run before leaving the opposition for dead and scoring a sumptuous individual goal, Messi and Suarez led the charge with well-taken strikes too.
But one man who caught the eye more than anybody else was Nelson Semedo.
First and foremost, let's understand the conditions he was subjected to. The Portuguese was assigned a different role at left back in the absence of Firpo and Jordi Alba (the latter was included in the match day squad, but wasn't fit to start). Semedo filled their boots well, surging down the left and providing the right sort of delivery for the forwards to feast on.
His cross led to the first goal, while he also played a major role in creating the second.
Defensively as well, the left back was in full command. He held his position well and won almost every duel he challenged for. These are promising signs for his role going forward in the season.
