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In a result which was totally unforeseen at the start of the weekend, Barcelona fell to a shock 4-3 loss at the hands of Real Betis Balompie at the Camp Nou in La Liga.
The Blaugrana headed into the match in first place on the league table, holding a one-point advantage over Atletico Madrid.
Barca would have sought to consolidate their position with a routine victory on matchday 12, especially as they welcomed back their talisman Lionel Messi into the side after a two-week layoff due to injury, scoring two goals on his return.
However, their visitors had other plans, ruining Messi’s welcome back and ensuring his goals were in vain, as this marked the first time in history that Barcelona had lost a match in which Messi scored a brace.
In a highly entertaining match, Barcelona fell two goals behind to mark their worst defensive run in LaLiga for 20 years, as this was the tenth consecutive match in which they conceded a goal.
And despite their late rally, the damage had been done, as Betis pulled off their first victory over Barcelona since 2008.
It was also the first time Barca had conceded four in a home league match since Deportivo put four into their net in a 4-2 victory way back in April 2003.
The defeat throws La Liga wide open once more, as Sevilla, Espanyol, Atletico and Real Madrid would all fancy their chances following this slip up by Barcelona. We take a look at six reasons why Barcelona lost to Real Betis at Nou Camp.
#6 Real Betis outplay Barca at their own game
Barcelona are widely revered as possession masters, with their tiki taka blend of football ensuring they always get the lion share of possession, and visitors can only sit back and absorb the pressure while attempting to ride their luck and hoping for the best.
Even the best of sides come to the Nou Camp and play on the counter, as most times, attempting to play an open-ended game with Barcelona has disastrous consequences, and some of the biggest sides have been on the receiving end of embarrassing scorelines.
Ahead of the match, Quique Setien promised that his side would play their own game, as they were powerless to do anything about Barca’s pattern.
And as Betis are widely known for their free-flowing football, a lot of people would have been forgiven for thinking it was just mere grandstanding from the 60-year-old, and that once his men enter the field, they would switch back to soaking up the pressure.
As it happened, not only did Betis stick to their game plan, but they totally outclassed Barcelona at the Nou Camp, outpassing and out pressing them, in essence, outplaying Barca at their very own game.
Lo Celso was emphatic in the middle, playing out defence-splitting passes, while former prodigy Christian Tello, Joaquin and Junior were all on hand to rattle the Barcelona backline time and again.
Real Betis showed real bravery to come out and play Barcelona which is easier said than done, and for the perfect execution of their gameplan on the night, they got their well-deserved reward by leaving Nou Camp with all three points.
#5 Marc-Andre Ter Stegen’s uncharacteristic mistake
Ter Stegen has been one of the most consistent performers for Barcelona since his 2014 transfer from Borussia Monchengladbach.
And after initially struggling to nail down a first-team spot has gone on to not only establish himself as the club’s first choice between the sticks but also unarguably one of the very best goalkeepers in the business at the moment.
He is widely revered for his shot-stopping abilities, while his technique and distribution with the ball at his feet is a critical component to the operation of Barcelona on the field of play.
His consistency in goal for Barcelona has led to widespread calls for him to displace Manuel Neuer as the No.1 for Germany, and coach Joachim Low came in for heavy criticism over his decision to start Neuer over the 26-year-old at the World Cup.
Against Betis, Ter Stegen was powerless to stop the first two goals, as he was let down by his defenders in front of him, but the third by Lo Celso is one which the Blaugrana goalie would not want to see again.
Barcelona had just pulled one back on 68 minutes after Lionel Messi converted from the penalty spot to half the deficit.
But just three minutes later, Lo Celso struck a speculative shot from outside the area which he himself would have expected Ter Stegen to save.
But the German international somehow managed to fluff his lines, deflecting the ball into the back of his net to make the scoreline 3-1 for Real Betis.
As at the time of Real Betis’ third goal, Barcelona had swung the momentum in their favour, and rattled their hosts, but the normally reliant Ter Stegen conspired to give his team a punch in the gut with his uncharacteristic error, which left Barcelona with a mountain to climb.
#4 Ernesto Valverde’s questionable tactics
Valverde has built a solid reputation in Spain as an astute manager over the last decade, and it is for his work with Athletic Bilbao that he was hired in the vacant Barcelona role following the departure of Luis Enrique in 2017.
And the 54-year-old guided the Catalans to a domestic double in his first season in charge.
Against Real Betis however, he got his team selection totally off from the get-go. He had Coutinho unavailable due to injury, so decided to reward summer signing Malcom for his impressive cameo against Inter Milan in midweek with his first La Liga start.
It was a move that backfired, as Malcom struggled to keep pace with his strike partners, as their time on the pitch together showed all the signs of a partnership which has not been used together before.
Malcom is predominantly a left-footer, and him playing on the right wing which is normally occupied by the right-footed Coutinho meant that Barcelona found themselves short in a key attacking outlet.
Also, Barcelona played too wide, as Valverde sought to exploit the width of the Nou Camp, but in this regard, he was outwitted by Setien.
Betis wingers Joaquin and Junior constantly exploited the spaces afforded them by Barcelona, deploying a highline in defence to devastating effect.
Valverde has earned a lot of rave reviews for his tactical nous since becoming Barcelona coach, but on the night, he got his tactics spot off, and it cost Barcelona dearly.
#3 Valverde was slow to effect changes
Coaches spend days and sometimes weeks studying opposition tactics, and coming up with a plan to counter it.
Then also spend time drilling their tactics into their players in a bid to get them to play the perfect match on the field, and while more often than not, the greatest coaches prevail in the tactical side of the game, there are instances when they get it wrong.
The latter was the case against Betis, as right from the get-go.
It was easy to see that Barcelona had been tactically outclassed in every department by their visitors, rattled at every turn, and struggling to get out of the blocks, with it looking like Real Betis could score with every attack they launched.
The criticism at Valverde since he became Barcelona boss is that he is too slow to change the shape of his team or take off an underperforming player, most times waiting till the dying moments before he takes action.
Against Betis, this indecision cost him, as he only waited until half-time to get on the more aggressive Vidal, even though it was evident that Barcelona needed more steel in midfield as they were being hassled by Betis in the middle.
While he only took off Malcom in the 57th minute to be replaced by El Haddadi with just 33 minutes left, despite the former Bordeaux player being a relative spectator for the duration of his stay on the pitch.
Both introductions had massive impacts on the game, as Vidal recorded a goal and an assist, while El Haddadi offered more potency upfront and combined well with Messi and Suarez, while also assisting Vidal’s goal.
#2 Rakitic’s red card
Ivan Rakitic arrived Barcelona in 2014 after immense success with Sevilla as their captain, and he has gone on to achieve legendary status in the Barcelona midfield.
Doing his work alongside icons like Xavi and Iniesta, and Busquets, he is now serving as a mentor for the young Arthur.
He helped the club to a treble in his debut season, and has since then lifted two more LaLiga crowns, contributing immensely to each triumph, so his worth to the Barcelona cause is not in doubt.
On the night against Betis, he however cost his team dearly as he was dismissed for a second bookable offence on 81 minutes.
This happened just two minutes after Barcelona got their crucial second, which forced the home team to play out the final nine minutes one man down, and Betis getting their fourth not long after.
Any team is bound to suffer with a man down, and even though on another day Barcelona might well have coped with the dismissal.
The events that happened on the night at Camp Nou meant they were struggling even with the full complement of eleven players, and Rakitic’s red card condemned them to a first LaLiga defeat at Camp Nou in over two years.
#1 Malcom failed to take his opportunity
The 20-year-old Brazilian had impressed significantly in Ligue One with Bordeaux and was one of the most sought after prospects in European football owing to his displays.
It therefore came as no surprise to see him linked with a host of the biggest clubs in the world, and Roma would have been very delighted when they seemed in pole position to snap him up, going as far as to announce his impending arrival at the club on twitter.
With thousands of fans waiting to greet him at the Airport until a dramatic twist of events changed the complexity of the transfer.
Barcelona swooped in with a last minute offer, and Malcom changed course by heading to Nou Camp, rather than the Stadio Olimpico, and Roma were so visibly upset by the hijack that they threatened legal action against the Catalans.
Since then, the winger has stuggled for game time at the club, limited to bit part cameo appearances, until he made his Champions League bow in midweek against Inter Milan.
Coming on in the dying moments of the game and opening his account for Barca with the opening goal of the game with what was virtually his first touch of the match.
He was rewarded with a place in the starting lineup, and had big boots to fill, as he was to occupy the role of Phillippe Coutinho, but Malcom failed to reach near the standards of his compatriot, and put up an incognito appearance for the 57 minutes he was on the pitch, before being replaced.
Malcom has sought playing opportunities ever since he made his acrimonious arrival at Barca, and on a night when his wish was granted, he woefully underperformed, and failed to make use of the opportunity, which is a real shame, considering how limited his chances are owing to the abundance of talent in the Barcelona attack.
