La Liga 18/19: Villareal 4-4 Barcelona - 5 talking points from the match

Barcelona and Villareal played out one of the most entertaining matches of the La Liga season as they canceled themselves in an exhilarating 4-4 draw at the Estadio de la Ceramica.

Having thrown away a two-goal lead to lose away to Celta Vigo over the last weekend in a relegation six-pointer, the Yellow Submarines were eager to make up for that but saw lightning strike twice in the space of four days as they once again let a two-goal lead slip in the final minute against the Blaugrana.

The hosts had themselves performed creditably well to claw their way back from a two-goal deficit early on to take the lead but will be cursing themselves for letting their guard down in the final few minutes.

The stalemate takes Villareal two point clear of the relegation zone, although they have played a game more than Celta Vigo who lie in 18th place and take on bottom-placed Huesca later today.

For their part, Barcelona saw their lead at the top of the table reduced to eight points ahead of the mega-showdown with Atletico Madrid this weekend. In this piece, we shall be highlighting five talking points from the memorable La Liga fixture.

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#5 Valverde almost pays the price for rotation

Barcelona's solid performance this term means they are one of four clubs still in the running to win a treble this season.

This means that unlike a lot of other clubs, Barca still have their focus on multiple fronts, with each competition still taking priority in the eyes of Ernesto Valverde.

It is no hidden secret that as we approach the home run of the season, the potential for injuries increases as the nine-month arduous journey of a football season begins to take a toll on player's bodies.

As such, it is usually advisable for coaches to rotate players in a bid to maintain freshness and continue their quest for success.

It is in keeping with this template that Valverde approached this match, naming a weakened starting lineup which saw the exclusion of sure first team starters like Lionel Messi, Gerard Pique, and Ivan Rakitic.

This is in no way taking anything away from the players who started, as they are all quality footballers in their own right, but the Villareal players must have sensed more opportunity than would have been the case had Valverde fielded his strongest eleven.

As it happened, the resting of Messi and co gave the hosts the impetus to go all out against Barcelona and they almost got all three points until the introduction of the big gun himself from the bench.

Valverde's inspired substitutions helped turn the tide back in Barcelona's favor, but it very well could have tuned out differently.

#4 Malcom could be Valverde's ace

Malcom could be useful in Barcelona's run-in — Malcom

Malcom was the subject of one of the most controversial transfers in history when he arrived Barcelona from Bordeaux despite having agreed terms with AS Roma.

The Brazilian international was expected to provide cover for or even surpass Ousmane Dembele in the first team, but that has largely not been the case, as the 22-year-old has been nothing but a bit-part player so far this season.

He has made just 17 appearances for the club in all competitions, most of which have come in Cup competitions, with rumors indicating that he could be on his way out of the club.

On the few occasions where Malcom has however played, he has proved his usefulness, making meaningful contributions that suggest he is willing to fight for his spot in the team when most other players would have sulked on.

Against Villareal, Malcom was handed a rare start and he made the most of it, setting Coutinho up in the 12th minute for the opener before putting the ball in the back of the net four minutes later for his first La Liga goal.

His impressive cameos could come in handy for Valverde as he launches an assault on three competitions.

Malcom could be the secret ace up his sleeve, especially on the continent where Lionel Messi could find himself short of attacking support, given that Luis Suarez continues to struggle in the Champions League, while Coutinho is horribly off form and Dembele out injured.

#3 Barcelona defense torn apart

Umtiti has not fully recovered from his injury

While Barcelona might be more famous for their incredible attackers and midfielders, the truth is that they are no slouches when it comes to defending.

As stated earlier, Ernesto Valverde rested Pique on the night, partnering French teammates Samel Umtiti and Clement Lenglet at the heart of defense.

The World Cup winner has been ravaged by injury this season and is yet to fully match-fit and this showed in his game throughout the night, as the 25-year-old struggled to keep up with the pace of the game and was constantly caught out by the Villareal attackers.

Clement Lenglet for his part has been ultra impressive this season, but for all of his domineering displays, it must be remembered that he is still learning the ropes and has been marshaled for most of the season by the vastly experienced Gerard Pique.

In the Spaniard's absence, neither Umtiti nor Lenglet managed to effectively keep the Villareal attackers at bay, as Simon Chukwueze, Santi Cazorla, Carlos Bacca, and Kal-Toko Ekambi constantly ran rings around them.

The shambolic defensive performance by Barcelona saw them ship in four goals and on another night, it would have cost them thee points, but thankfully they had their attacking teammates to thank for salvaging a point.

#2 Villareal keeping Barcelona on their toes

Samuel Chukwueze was a thorn in Barcelona's flesh

Though they might be 16 places apart and separated by a whopping 70 points on the La Liga table, nothing about the match suggested the difference in gulf n form of both teams.

Villareal fans might be more accustomed to seeing their club fighting for the European spots on the higher spectrum of the table, but the realities this season are very different and they have to grind it out in a bid to avoid the drop.

With just eight matches left in the season, every game essentially becomes a cup final for the Yellow Submarines and it is with this mindset that they approached the game with the Blaugrana.

For 90 minutes, Villareal held their own against their more illustrious visitors, taking the game to Barcelona and giving as much as they got.

Vincent Iborra and Santi Cazorla called the shots in the middle, while Chukwueze and Ekambi kept the Barca defense on their toes.

In total, the hosts had nine shots, of which five were on target (more than the four Barcelona managed), while they also hit the woodwork twice and f they can keep up with this form, it is not hard to imagine them avoiding the drop.

#1 Lionel Messi the difference maker

Messi's value to Barcelona is not without doubt. His status as the greatest player in the club's history means he has been essential to everything won by the team in the last decade and everything they look to win.

The Argentine international has kept up with his impressive displays this season and has been the major driving force behind Barcelona's quest for a third treble, leading the way with most goals scored and assists created.

This led even Valverde himself to state before the match that it is never a good idea to rest Messi and the 55-year-old soon found out literally how true that statement was less than 24 hours later.

For 61 minutes, Lionel Messi watched on from the sidelines as his teammates struggled to put Villareal to the sword and it goes without saying that he had a hand in Barcelona's stunning last-minute comeback.

Freekicks are rapidly becoming a specialty of Lionel Messi and Villareal became the latest to feel his deadly accuracy from setpieces as he smashed an unstoppable free-kick over the wall and into the back of the net to pave the way for Luis Suarez's equalizer moments later.