League leaders Barcelona tightened their grip on the Spanish title with a comfortable 5-0 victory over local rivals Espanyol at the Camp Nou.
La Liga’s top scorer Luis Suarez struck twice on the day, taking his tally to 37 league goals for the season. Forwards Lionel Messi and Neymar, along with substitute Rafinha also got on the scoresheet, with each of them finding the back of the net once.
Espanyol never really looked like they were going to put up a fight. The Blanquiazules had no one else to blame but themselves as they committed defensive errors time and again, which essentially put the game beyond their reach.
Here are five talking points from the game:
MSN back at it again
Barcelona’s attacking trio showed everyone why they are the best in the world yet again. Luis Suarez continued his stellar run as he scored twice and set up Neymar for the fifth goal of the game. The Uruguayan now leads Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo by 4 goals in the race for the Pichichi award.
Lionel Messi opened the scoring with an early goal, a brilliantly curled free-kick from just outside the box into the top corner. More goals came in the second half as Suarez struck twice within a span of ten minutes. Substitute Rafinha scored a minute after he came on, and Neymar bagged a late goal to complete the rout.
The three linked up well in crucial areas. Towards the end of the game, Suarez had a clear chance to score, but the Uruguayan unselfishly chose to pass the ball to Neymar instead, who made no mistake as he slotted the ball home.
Neymar’s return to form
Neymar, who seemed to have lost his form after the recent slump that Barcelona endured, showed signs of revival as he continually created trouble on the left flank with his penetrating runs and skillful dribbles. The Brazilian bagged a goal and an assist to his name on the evening.
From the very beginning, Neymar tormented Javi Lopez as he danced his way past the full-back with ease almost every time. Lopez couldn’t get anywhere near the quick-footed Brazilian throughout the ninety minutes.
The former Santos forward delivered an accurate ball into the box from a corner, setting up Suarez for his second goal of the game. He also came close to scoring from a free-kick in the first half. There is no doubt that Neymar’s return to form will play a major role in Barcelona’s final bid for the title.
Sloppy play from Espanyol
It was almost painful to see Espanyol trying to hold their ground against the might of Luis Enrique’s side. The Periquitos were extremely sloppy in possession as they gave the ball away cheaply in dangerous areas.
Papakouli Diop lost possession in his own half and Barcelona immediately capitalized as Messi played a menacing through-ball into the path of Suarez, who made no mistake as he slotted the ball past an advancing Pau Lopez. Minutes later, Lopez almost conceded another goal as his attempted clearance went straight to Suarez.
Wing-back Javi Lopez was out-muscled with ease by Suarez as the striker went on to score his second of the game with a header. Just when it seemed like things couldn’t get any worse for Galca’s side, keeper Pau Lopez fumbled as he tried to deal with a low cross into the box, enabling substitute Rafinha to score with his first touch of the ball.
Diop was wasteful with his passing yet again as he lost possession right outside the Espanyol box. Dani Alves immediately lobbed the ball into the path of a charging Suarez who squared it for Neymar. The ex-Santos man found himself completely unmarked as he knocked the ball into an open net.
Espanyol fail to pull off another “Tamudazo”
Constantin Galca’s men entered the match seeking another "Tamudazo" to deny Barcelona their 24th La Liga title. In 2007, former Espanyol striker Raul Tamudo scored a 90th-minute equaliser at the Camp Nou in a memorable derby which resulted in Barcelona losing the title race against Fabio Capello’s Real Madrid.
The Catalan derby has come to be known as one of the most unbalanced derbies in Spain. The last victory for the Periquitos came in the 2008-09 season when they became the first team to defeat Barcelona at the Camp Nou in their treble-winning season
Blaugrana boss Luis Enrique made it very clear that he wasn’t aware of the “Tamudazo” and all he cared about was emerging victorious against the local rivals to keep their title hopes alive.
La Liga race to culminate in a final day showdown
A 2-1 away loss to relegated Levante means that Atletico Madrid are essentially out of the race for the Spanish title. Real Madrid managed to snatch a victory by the narrowest of margins with a 3-2 win over Valencia.
Zinedine Zidane’s side are only a point below bitter rivals Barcelona after they bagged their 11th successive win in the league. Barca have to secure a win at Granada in order to defend their title. A draw or a loss for the Catalans could give Los Blancos a chance to get their hands on the trophy.
With Atleti out of the title race and bitter rivals Barcelona and Real Madrid set to put everything on the line for Spanish glory, drama on the final day is guaranteed.
