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Seventh-placed Getafe hosted league leaders Barcelona in their first home game of 2019. With Atletico Madrid and Sevilla both dropping points in their 1-1 draw, Barcelona had a chance to go five points clear at the top of the LaLiga table.
A loss for Santiago Solari's Real Madrid also meant that the Catalan outfit would boast a 10 point lead over them. Getafe had a chance to move into contention for the Europa League spot following Real Betis's shock defeat to Huesca.
In what was a surprising decision, Ernesto Valverde rested Sergio Busquets and Nelson Semedo for the game. Phillipe Coutinho continued to start from the bench. Arthur started in the midfield along with Vidal and Rakitic. Barcelona's loan signing Jeison Murillo started from the bench.
Lionel Messi scored the opening goal for Barcelona after confusion between David Soria and his defense.
Messi sneaked the ball in between Soria's left before passing it into the open net for his first goal of 2019.
Luis Suarez doubled Barcelona's lead at the brink of half-time with a volley. Getafe found a response soon after through Jaime Mata in the 43rd minute.
The second half did not add to the goals despite good chances for both sides. Jaime Mata missed a sitter from in front of the open goal and Lionel Messi also missed a one-on-one against Soria.
Barcelona held onto their lead to win the game and also go five points clear of the chasing pack in the league. The Blaugrana have a bit of fixture congestion coming up with Copa Del Rey Round Of 16 and league games scheduled tightly. They will take on Levante in the Copa Del Rey next.
Here are five talking points from the game.
#5 Getafe makes a strong case for Europa League spot after making Barcelona sweat
The performance of any team against Barcelona does not depend necessarily on the result. The home team was undeterred despite Barcelona dominating them in the first half and also cruising with a two-goal lead. They found a quick response for Suarez's goal at the brink of half-time through Jaime Mata.
In the second half, Getafe had several more spells of possession and more lethal chances at goal. Marc Ter Stegen made a wonderful reflex save off a header from a corner.
Jaime Mata had the chance to equalize and he had an open net in front. Yet somehow he managed to fluff the opportunity. Even the commentator suggested that Mata had equalized after he dribbled the keeper but it was not to be.
However, Getafe lacked the cutting edge against a rigid Barcelona team who knows how to hold onto a lead.
This doesn't mean that all hope is lost for them. They pressed very well and played a high tempo game.
This type of playing style is capable of getting them to the Europa League. If they could beat Alaves later this month, their chances of getting to Europa will get a momentum boost.
Barcelona did not win without breaking a sweat and Getafe should be proud of their performance.
#4 When will Barcelona's defensive prowess improve against high lobbed passes?
It hurts for a fan to see this again and again. It hurts when a good goalkeeper like Ter Stegen is underrated due to lack of clean sheets.
It is woeful. Barcelona's defence is left in absolute shambles when they are faced with a high looping delivery into the box. It is present from the start of the season.
Real Sociedad made them sweat due to the one goal they scored off a set-piece delivery into the box.
Atletico Madrid nearly beat them on the back of the one goal they scored from a corner kick. PSV equalized at home from a headed goal off a cross.
Huesca, twentieth on the table, scored two goals against Barcelona, both from high crosses from either flank. Getafe yesterday, scored similarly, from a high lobbed pass which the defense couldn't deal with.
The man marking from Barcelona's defense is horrific. They just let the player get his head to the ball without any pressure. Sergi Roberto is very weak to deal with crosses and he doesn't even look to stop the source of the cross.
Gerard Pique is better off in one-on-one situations rather than dealing with crosses. For a manager like Valverde who knows how to cross the ball, because he relied on them at Bilbao, it shouldn't actually be rocket science to know how to stop them from hurting.
#3 David Soria turns out to be a real thorn for the Blaugrana
To be honest, David Soria is not rated very high in terms of goalkeeping standards. Neto, Pacheco, and Vaclik are some goalkeepers who are termed above average in Spain, apart from the obvious Marc ter Stegen, Oblak, Courtois, and Keylor Navas.
David Soria's performance yesterday deserves a nine on ten at least. On his own, he denied Barcelona a landslide victory and he might very well have denied Lionel Messi a hattrick.
Soria made a total of six saves, each of them a commendable effort. When Lionel Messi has five shots on target and converts only one of them, you better put the name of the goalkeeper in your transfer shortlist.
Gerard Pique strode down the park and released a point-blank shot which was saved by Soria. He denied Messi on four occasions. One of them, a one-on-one effort, another one a mid-range effort, and another one a classic Lionel Messi curler from outside the box.
With many teams including Barcelona on a look-out for a keeper or backup keeper, Soria could provide a young and cheap option. Yesterday he was amazing and it cannot be a fluke. With a better defense, he would do even better.
#2 There is no need for a short-term Suarez replacement, the Uruguayan is more than just functional
There have been talks of Barcelona looking to find a replacement for Luis Suarez recently. Looking at a long-term, signing a young striker would be a very good idea on the part of the Blaugrana.
The youth players can learn from El Pistolero himself on how to become more than just a poacher.
However, there have been some people including fans of Barcelona who have been calling for Luis Suarez to be sold. Bad option in my opinion and many others a well.
A striker like Suarez, well rounded, a good passer, a telepathic link with Messi like no other player, is hard to find. Selling Suarez means that the Catalans have to go for somebody with experience in Europe.
Paying an astronomical fee for players above 28 is not what Barcelona should do. They have Suarez ready for action at all times.
They should just look to sign a young striker who would replace Luis Suarez over time. Timo Werner, for example.
Luis Suarez is match-fit and he is hungry to get goals. He got it from an impossible against Espanyol.
Yesterday, he rifled the ball with a volley past Soria, who was excellent of the night. Suarez is in the beast mode right now but he also passes well. Barcelona needs him for at least two more seasons and he showed why he is one of the better strikers with his goal.
#1 Barcelona in cruise control in the title race
Real Madrid lost to Sociedad. Atletico and Sevilla played out a draw while dropping points. This left Barcelona a clear window to extend their lead and they did just that.
The Blaugrana are now five points clear of the chasing pack. This comes as a big advantage to the Catalans in terms of their remaining season.
This means that they are certainly favorites to retain the league title but they could also focus on the bigger prizes.
A clear gap at the top when March arrives could be even better. Barcelona could, in fact, seal the deal in the league by March and then focus on the Champions League knockouts.
Ernesto Valverde could also utilize this opportunity to rest one of the starting players in the upcoming league games against Girona, Eibar etc.
Luis Suarez, Ivan Rakitic, Jordi Alba, all need a fair bit of rest with a lot of fixtures coming up. A three-point gap did not give breathing space to the Catalans but now they have it and could make most of it.
