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Barcelona were held to a frustrating 0-0 draw at Getafe in La Liga on Sunday, August 12. The result sees the visitors already trail arch-rivals Real Madrid by two points.
Getafe enjoyed a strong preseason as they won four of their six outings, scoring 14 goals in the process. Their last game was a comfortable 4-1 win over Eredivisie side Vitesse as they looked eager to get started with the season. Manager Jose Bordalas named a strong lineup for their season-opener.
Barca had a strong preseason as well, winning four of their five outings - their only defeat being an entertaining 5-3 reverse against Arsenal. They defeated Tottenham Hotspur 4-2 in the Joan Gamper Trophy final to end their preseason. Xavi Hernandez named a strong lineup as Barcelona looked to make a strong start to their title defense.
As expected, Barcelona made a positive start to the game, keeping possession and looking to shift Getafe's defensive lines out of position. They had the ball for 76% of the first period and made good use of it as they created multiple chances. However, they lacked a cutting edge to find a way past David Soria in the hosts' goal, who made three good saves in the first half.
Raphinha's red card in the 42nd minute worsened things for an already frustrated Barcelona side, who were left to play the rest of the game with 10 men. Luckily for them, their defense looked in great nick and held out with ease until half time.
The second half was a similar story in terms of possession, with Barcelona keeping the ball for 74% of the time. They created a bigger number of chances with Xavi's use of substitutions aiding them at regular intervals. However, they were not clinical in front of goal with just one shot on target in eight attempts.
Getafe midfielder Jaime Mata was sent off for a second bookable offense, while Barcelona manager Xavi was sent to the stands after receiving a red card himself.
With not a lot of goalmouth action in store, the game ended in a 0-0 stalemate. On that note, let's take a look at the five major talking points, as they happened.
#5. Raphinha was shown a straight red card for a nasty elbow
Barca were under the cosh as Getafe seemed solid and thwarted the visitors' attempts to score. Despite dominating possession, Xavi's men struggled to break down Getafe's defensive lines, which led to desperation at times.
During a break, Raphinha tried to make a diagonal run across the path of Gaston Alvarez, who tried to block his run. Frustrated by the contact, the Brazilian lashed out at the hosts' left-back with his elbow and was shown a straight red card. Getafe manager Bordalas was livid on the sidelines after the incident.
#4. Nearly 11 minutes of first-half stoppage time was played
Due to multiple stoppages during the first period, the referee added a whopping 10 minutes at the end of regular time. However, with many incidents still taking place between both sets of players, there were multiple stoppages in that added time as well, leading the first half to be played for nearly 11 minutes more than the regular 45.
#3. Getafe's Jaime Mata sees red too, followed by Barcelona manager Xavi
Jaime Mata was shown a yellow card midway through the first period after a needless argument with the referee following a decision he was unhappy with. While it did not seem like a threat for Getafe at that point, their decision to leave Mata on the pitch backfired in the second period.
The midfielder committed himself to a challenge and was shown his second yellow card, and subsequently given his marching orders.
Soon after, in a rather unpleasant situation, Barca manager Xavi, too, received a red card and was sent into the stands.
#2. Forgettable start to the season for the defending champions
Barcelona would have liked to make a better start to defending their crown, ideally with a win. However, they were held to a scrappy goalless draw by Getafe, who carried considerable momentum from preseason into this game.
In a match where the number of bookings (12) was twice the number of shots on target from both teams combined (6), the referee turned out to be the busiest person on the pitch.
To add insult to injury for Barca, their manager Xavi was sent packing to the stands after display of ill-discipline.
#1. There was an incredible 25 minutes of total stoppage time in the game
Due to multiple stoppages in the first half, the referee added an initial 10 minutes of stoppage time, which was inevitably extended by a couple minutes due to further delays. The second half story was similar, with a penalty check adding to the already mentioned nine minutes stoppage time.
The game finally ended in the 105th minute, indicating nearly 15 minutes of stoppage time was played in the first period. Having nearly one-fourth of a regular game duration added to the game could take a severe toll on players over the course of this season.
